Keep Yourself Alive
by CuteMooglez
Summary: UPDATE! Sequel to WWTLF. After Zidane dies, Mikoto is left in a world she knows nothing about. Not to mention, Garland's ultimate plan has been revealed, and leaves her in an emotional shell. Can anyone break it? Or will it lead to Gaia's destruction?
1. Keep Yourself Alive

Disclaimer: We don't own Final Fantasy, or any of the related characters or places.  This disclaimer will last for the duration of this fic.

A/N: Just like it's prequel, 'Keep Yourself Alive' got its name from a Queen song.  I couldn't think of a title on my own, so I just looked through my Queen CDs (Hehe…I have a lot) and this title seemed to fit.  You won't figure out why until you read…

"Keep yourself alive, keep yourself alive.  It may take all your time and money but honey you'll survive."   -'Keep Yourself Alive' words and music by: Freddy Mercury

Keep Yourself Alive: Chapter One

She was running as fast as she could down a long corridor.  Her messy blond hair bounced as she bounded further and further down the dark passage.  Why did she continue to run, even when she became so short of breath?  Sometimes she wasn't even sure herself.  There was many a time in which she wanted to give up, but then the voices would get louder.

"Mikoto…" She stopped abruptly, panting and placing her hand over her heart.  "Mikoto…" the voice spoke again.  Now horribly confused, the Genome began to look every which way.  She recognized that voice, but it was impossible!  As much as she wanted to believe it was Zidane, she knew better.  Zidane was gone forever.

Her eyes were now blurred with tears as she continued down the hall.  Even if her hopes were in vain, she wanted to see him.

"Mikoto!  Over here!" another voice chorused with Zidane's.  This one she recognized as Kuja.  Both of the voices were coming from the end of the hall.  Excitedly she pursued them, pushing all doubt from her mind.

A door was up ahead, she was almost there!  She picked up her pace slightly as she drew ever closer to the end.  Steadily the voices were getting louder.

"Mikoto!  In here!"

Finally she made it to the door.  Gasping for air, Mikoto put her hands on her knees.  She was certain the voices were coming from there!  Once her breathing was almost normal again, she reached up with a single hand and turned the handle.  With ease the door opened and a burst of light flooded the corridor.  It was so incredibly bright that she winced and had to shield her eyes with her black sleeve.

"Mikoto!" Zidane's voice exclaimed.  Slowly her eyes focused and she could make out her surroundings.  She stood in the library of the Desert Palace, but something was different.  For the most part it seemed unchanged.  The candelabras were lit, and the sun shone through the stained glass windows making all the colors of the rainbow dance around the room and bounce off of the shelves of books.

However, instead of a wall on the far left of the room there was an unmistakable black line running across the floor.  For several minutes she stood there, examining the line when something snapped her attention away from it.

"Over here!  Mikoto!" Her gaze looked past the line and landed on two figures who were standing side-by-side not fifteen feet away.  She felt her heart leap into her throat.  It was them!  Her brothers were standing there, beaming and waving.

"Zidane?  K-Kuja!?" Her eyes stung with more tears as she ran for them, her arms outstretched, preparing to embrace them.  Suddenly, she was on her back.  It had felt like she ran into a wall.  She opened a single blue eye but there was nothing.

"Come on!" Kuja said.  His eyes were full of a childish happiness that she had never seen in him before.

Sighing, she took a step back and examined the situation.  She was standing inches away from that line.  What did it mean?

"You _must _come!  You have so much to learn!" Zidane pleaded.

For a second she made eye contact with him.  He looked just as excited as Kuja, though she could sense some other emotion.  Fear?  Sorrow?  She couldn't tell.

"Hurry, Mikoto!"

"I'm trying!  It won't let me!"

The two brothers exchanged curious glances and looked back at her.  Now desperate to make it to the 'other side', she took several more steps back and ran full force, only to be deflected by the line again.

"What's wrong!?  Why won't it let me through!?" she mumbled savagely to herself.  Her eyes darted back to Zidane and Kuja.  They weren't standing in the library, it looked more like…Bran Bal.  That was it!  They were standing in front of one of the houses, and she could see the water in the distance.  So that line…how did it work? 

"You'll find your answers in Terra…" Zidane and Kuja said together.  Then, giving Mikoto a sad look, they disappeared entirely.

"Wait!" she called after the vast nothingness.  Helplessly, she banged her fists against the invisible force-field that held her back.  "No!  Don't leave me again!"  She slid down the unseen wall, hugged her legs to her chest, and sobbed into her knees. 

*          *          *

All of a sudden, Mikoto was aware of a sharp pain in her head and the cold touch of stone against her bare skin.  Her eyes shot open and she looked wildly around.  Slowly her room came into focus.  It was just a dream, but it seemed so real!  
            Gingerly she brought her hands up to her cheeks.  Tears still streamed heavily down her face.  From across the room the numbers 3:42 flashed in red on her digital clock.

"Mikoto?" a voice called from the other side of her door.  

"No more…" she thought out loud, putting her hands against her ears.  "No more, please."

"Mikoto, are you alright?  Kupo?"

Opening a single eye, she realized who it was.  "Y-Yeah" she stammered, "I'll be alright."  Shakily, she stood up and opened her bedroom door where a moogle stood.  "Sorry Mojito, did I scare you?"

The moogle nodded, causing his red pom-pom ball to bounce.  "What happened, kupo?"

"Ugh…fell out of bed…" she said, holding her sore head and forcing a smile.  Once Zidane had died, she was sure she would be alone.  Never did it occur to her that there were moogles in the Desert Palace.  There were two, Mojito and Mogsam.

Mogsam was rather strange, he enjoyed keeping to himself and playing pranks on anyone who was unfortunate enough to pass him.  Mojito on the other hand was more calm and friendly.  For about a month he was Mikoto's only companion.  However, Mojito did a lot of traveling, so Mikoto didn't see much of him.  From the way he was dressed it looked like he was getting ready to leave just as Mikoto fell out of bed.

"So, where are you going this time?" she asked him.

Mojito shifted his little backpack, "I'm meeting Stiltzkin in Burmecia, kupo.  Do you need me to bring anything back?" 

"Just stories and news."

"Alright, kupopo!  I'll be back in a few days!" With that, Mojito turned around and flew off.  Mikoto leaned against her doorway and watched him go.  Now it would be her and Mogsam…again.  She shuddered to think about what pranks he would try to pull this time.

Mikoto looked back at her clock.  It was nearing four, but the memory of her dream was still lingering.  She wanted so bad to talk to someone about it, but Mojito just left.  As tired as she felt, she didn't think she could fall asleep again.

_Might as well get dressed…_she thought as she walked back inside her room, shutting the door behind her.  She dressed in silence, putting on her usual pink skirt, white and pink blouse with a black long sleeved shirt under it.  Because she avoided going in to town unless it was necessary, she didn't own that much clothing.  Occasionally she would wear Zidane's old clothes, even though they were too big for her.  His scent still lingered in the fabric and in his room.  She couldn't help but smile at the familiar smell.  It made her feel…less alone.

When Mikoto had finally dressed, she walked down the stairs to the kitchen.  Just as she was rearing the bottom of the stairs, she heard a cry of, "Geronimo!"   Her instincts told her to duck, and it was a good thing she listened to her intuition.  At that moment, Mogsam flew at full speed right where her head had been.

"Mogsam!  You do that again and I'll pull off your pom-pom ball!  Don't think I won't!  It's too early in the morning to be so loud!" Mikoto complained.

The moogle hovered in midair, laughing.  "You're not as threatening as your brother!"

While Zidane was still alive, both of the moogles hid.  Something about him scared them.  _Probably the dagger…_she thought.  Then, smiling somewhat she added in, "If only he were still alive, what would he do to you?"  The moogle gulped, "Impale you?  Boil you?" With each idea, Mogsam backed up farther and farther.  "Or…maybe, he'd just pounce on you!" She said the last one so loud that Mogsam turned around and began flying full-speed.  Unfortunately, he didn't pay attention to where he was going, and flew directly into a wall.

Mikoto laughed.  She knew Zidane would never do any of that, but she couldn't resist torturing that moogle.  Lord knows how many times he tortured her.  She walked past the stunned Mogsam and into the kitchen where she began to raid the pantry.

"We need groceries…" she thought out loud.  It wasn't fun going without food.  Because she couldn't die, not having food didn't affect her health, it was just extremely uncomfortable.  After searching she decided that a bagel would hold her over for the morning.

"I'll get you back for that one…kupo," Mogsam grumbled as he scurried into the kitchen as well.  He was holding his left paw against his already swollen head.

"Of course you will, Mogsam," Mikoto said nonchalantly, taking a bite from her bagel.  The moogle scowled at her and sat on top of the table where he began writing a letter.

"Calling for reinforcements?" she asked as she watched him.  Artemecian was due at the Palace tomorrow to pick up and drop off mail.  Mognet was one of Mikoto's few connections to the outside world. 

"How did you know, kupo?" Mogsam grumbled sarcastically.

Smiling, Mikoto shrugged and stuffed the last of the bagel in her mouth.  Once she swallowed her breakfast, she got up from the table.

"Where're you going, kupo?"

"The library…not that it's any of your business," she cooed.  The moogle didn't say anything and continued to write.

As she forced her way down the hall she tried to keep her mind on the obstacles.  If she missed lighting just one candle, it would ruin everything.  But her mind was wandering back to her dream.  She had been standing in the library…so maybe going there would help her.

When she opened the door, she half expected to see that black line.  But it looked the same it had always been.  Mikoto sighed and began to leave when she had an idea.

"Maybe there's a book in here on translating dreams…" she said thoughtfully.  Now very curious she climbed one of the ladders and began to look through the selection of books.

Because it was Kuja's palace before anyone else's, a lot of the books had to do with magic and Summoning.  However, there were tons of others!  There was all of Lord Avon's works, poetry books, fantasy, mystery….but one in particular caught her eye.  There wasn't anything special about it.  As a matter of fact it was a very ordinary book.  It was old, the leather binding was ripped and several pages torn.  So, why this book?  Why did this book interest her more than all of the others?

She reached up and gently pulled if off of the bookcase.  The book was so old that the title was barely legible.  After squinting for a few minutes, she gasped and almost dropped the ancient thing.

" 'Basic Magic'…this is the book that taught me to use my first spell; cure!" All of a sudden, she was more interested.  _How'd it get here!?  I thought it was in Garland's Observatory when Kuja burnt it down!  _She thought wildly.

Tucking the book under her arm, she made her way back down the ladder and out of the library.  This time she headed for the study.  When she got there, she locked the door behind her (to avoid any distractions from Mogsam) and sat at the desk.

The Genome sat in the leather chair and opened up the book.  The stench of aged, damp parchment made its way to her nose.  She covered her face with her left sleeve and with her other hand began to flip through the pages.  She wasn't sure of what she was looking for, but was once again following her instincts.

Suddenly, someone knocked on the study door and startled her, causing her to drop the book.  Loose pages slowly fluttered to the ground as she stood there, grasping her heart.  "Hey, Mikoto!" Mogsam yelled.

"What?"

"D'you have any stamps?  Kupo?  Can't mail this without one…kupopo!"

"Yeah, there should be some in here somewhere…" she said as she rummaged through the desk drawer.  "Ah-ha!  Found one!" Mikoto got up and walked to the door, opened it and handed the stamp to the moogle. After Mogsam left, she went back to the desk.

She bent down to pick the book up when she noticed several of the pages were scattered on the floor.  "I'm going to kill that moogle…"she swore as she picked up one of the pages.  Flipping it over, she realized it wasn't from the book.  It was handwritten.

Frantically she looked at the other loose papers, they were the same.  Who's handwriting was it though?  She knew Kuja's and Zidane's, this was someone else's.  Her eyes scanned over the papers and she murmured, "Garland…"

The first of these papers said, "Project #6: Genome Vessel".  As much as it interested her, she skipped over it and continued on to "Project #7: Angel of Death".  It had a rough sketch of a young Kuja.  In the drawing he looked to be around the age of five.  The familiar Terran writing said:

**Project #7: Angel of Death: **

**Report 1:** After many failed attempts, I have finally succeeded in building a prototype strong enough for a soul.  The process required the sacrifice of souls until one suitable for the body was found.  An Angel of Death cannot exist unless their body and soul are equally matched.  This prototype seems to be functioning properly now, but as it is my first experiment, I believe it will expire sooner than I had hoped. I will begin to work on a new prototype in the near future. It will take the place of the first when it can no longer serve my intentions.

Report 2: The Angel of Death who now refers to itself as Kuja has begun to show signs of malfunction.  The soul that I had conceived for him appears to be too independent and disobedient for the purpose I had in mind.  It refuses to take up studying in combat and only busies itself with its spells.  I must hurry with the new prototype so I can remove the first one's soul and destroy it. Project #8: Angel of Death 2 

I began work on the new prototype almost immediately after the fist began showing signs of malfunction.  The new Angel of Death will be enhanced in every way; speed, strength, agility and intelligence.  The body will resemble that of a normal Genome though its soul will be anything but normal.  

Through observation, I've come to understand the body structure of the first prototype was all wrong for combat.  Thus, my new Angel of Death's body will be smaller, and therefore more suited for speed and agility.  The eyes will have perfect vision, be able to attack with pinpoint accuracy and its tail will enhance balance.  The soul I have conceived for it is perfect, for this prototype is flawless.   This soul is confident in its skills, and obedient unlike its predecessor.  It also seems to have amazing powers I have never seen the likes of before.  When these forces suraface he becomes ten times more powerful and can perform devastating attacks, easily capable of destroying an entire village.  Though it is still in the testing stage, I know this one will be a success.  Such a powerful Angel of Death deserves a name of equivalent strength…Zidane.

Already, I know that he alone will be enough to complete my plan of assimilating Terra with Gaia.  However, things are liable to go wrong and I may need a back-up plan.  When I merged the Gaian soul with my ultimate vessel, a strange new ability surfaced.  Because of Zidane's internal power it enhanced the power of this technique.  I must find the source behind this ability, given the name Dyne.  

Project #9: Trance 

After putting Zidane through many strenuous tests, I have found the source of the power I have been looking for.  These special attacks of his are brought about by a rush of emotion.

I doubt that I will need a third Angel, but for safe measures I will build one anyway.

Project #10: Angel of Death 3 

If both of my first Angels are not able to fulfill their purposes of destroying all life on Gaia and return the souls to Terra, I will be forced to take drastic measures.  I did hours of experimenting with my 'normal' Genome vessels and have discovered a way to program these so-called 'Trances'.  Using the same body structure as the Angel, Zidane, I created a female Angel.  Her soul is very weak, as is her mind.  Though these traits are lacking compared to my first Angels, they are perfect for the assignment given to her.

If, for some reason both the Angels Kuja and Zidane are to fail, this will unlock a hidden chamber inside her mind.  She will begin to learn things at fast rates, including all sorts of skills and abilities.  The most important thing she will learn is her Trance attack: Kamikaze.

This will be my last and only hope for resurrecting my precious Terra, so it will doubtlessly work.  She will then, at a time of great emotion, build up a tremendous amount of energy and explode, taking all plant, animal and human life with her.

Mikoto's throat felt dry.  Everything…every single thing seemed to come down on her.  _I promised Zidane!  I promised him I wouldn't let Garland win!  _"I won't allow it!"

*** * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ***

**Sorry it just kind of cuts off.  Hehe.  I'll leave you all hanging!  I'm sorry but this story isn't going to be as fast with updating as Who Wants to Live Forever.  When I started posting WWTLF I had a majority of the story written, so I was able to update it at one week intervals.  This one won't be so lucky, so I'm not going to make any promises when the second chapter will be up.  But it's in the works right now!  Please review!  I really look forward to hearing from everyone again!  (Oh, and by the way, the moogle names are directly from the game!  Both of them were in the Desert Palace!!) ^_^ R&R!**


	2. Under Pressure

**Elendil Star-Lover**: I noticed that on your profile at the very bottom you've written the lyrics to the Rush song, "The Trees".  ^_^ I love that song!  Count on me to point out all the classic rock, but what can I say?  I live for that kind of music!  Also, I really liked all of your quotes you've put on there!   Oh, and **FF9 Zidane**!  On your profile you have the theme song to Ranma!  ^_^  Hehe!  I love that show.  And it has an awesome song!

A/N: Wow!  I was surprised with the response I got with the first chapter!  Not only do I see a lot of my old reviewers ::waves:: Hi guys!  But I noticed a bunch of other people.  Thanks everyone for reading my story!  And for putting up with my slowness.  -_- Gomen nasai.  Telling you that we are extremely busy is a major understatement, but not a good excuse.  I'll try to update these faster, but you have to realize that I'm updating this story as quickly as I write it and Noelle (Save-the-Queen) edits it.  Arigatou everyone for putting up with me!

Chapter Two

With a shaky hand, Mikoto opened the door of the study.  Papers littered the floor where she had dropped them in her state of shock.  In a zombie-like manner, she walked to the kitchen.  She wouldn't cry.  She wouldn't give Garland that satisfaction.

The thought that haunted her the most was that anything, any little emotion could cause the end of the world.  And it was up to her to protect Gaia.  She held herself to her promise, even if she had to be miserable.

"What's up Mikoto?"

The sudden voice almost caused her to leap out from her skin.  It was only Mogsam.  Once she calmed down, she softly said, "Don't do that."

"You should've seen the look on your face!" the moogle laughed.  She felt her cheeks redden as embarrassment took over her.

"No!" Mikoto yelled, shaking her head, "Just leave me alone!"

Mogsam watched as the Genome sprinted away from him.  Automatically he felt bad about picking on her, however he wouldn't admit it.  Tired and confused, he carried his letter to the kitchen table and added a postscript to the letter had had written to Mojito.

**P.S. Come home soon.  Mikoto needs you, kupo!**

The moogle sealed the  letter and set it aside to mail later.  Still feeling bad about teasing Mikoto, he decided to check on her.  _She's probably in her room, _he thought, _I'll check there first.  _He flew up to Mikoto's room and poked his head in.  It was completely empty.  The bed was unmade and the curtains were still drawn, giving the room a dark and eerie look.

"Maybe she's in the study, kupo…" he inquired to himself.  Slowly he wandered through the long halls of the Palace, finally making it to the study.  Without even knocking this time, he threw open the door and thrust himself into the room.

Mikoto sat in the leather armchair behind the desk, staring off into space and obviously deep in thought.  Mogsam was about to sneak away and not disturb her when he noticed something odd.  Mikoto's face was completely expressionless.

"M-Mikoto?" the creature stuttered nervously.  Wearily she shifted her gaze to look at him.  Her eyes were cold and distant.  "Is everything all right?"

Very slowly, she shook her head, yet not even one word escaped her lips.  "Well…do you want to talk about it?"  Again, she shook her head and stared back into space.

Maybe she did not know that the moogle still stood there, staring at her, or maybe she just ignored him, because she did not do so much as look at him the rest of the time he was in there.  Inside his little mind, the moogle was thinking of all the possible ways that he could cheer her up.  As much as he hated to admit it, Mikoto was one of his only friends, and losing her to a depression like this would not be good.

A crash came from downstairs, interrupting his thoughts.  This time, it was he who jumped.  Looking back at Mikoto, he saw that she seemed unaffected by the noise.  Normally _she _was the jumpy one.  Shaking these thoughts away, Mogsam scurried down a few staircases to see a flash of purple fly into the kitchen.

"Artemecian!" the moogle cried.  Turning his head back to the study, he yelled, "Mikoto!  Artemecian is here, kupo!!"  No response came.  Mogsam sighed and ran to meet the mail-moogle.

"Hi, Mogsam, how're things in the Palace, kupopo?" the purple moogle asked as he began rummaging through his mailbag.

"I'm not sure anymore.  Everything was fine until about an hour ago, kupo…"

Artemecian looked up from the letters he was pulling out of his sack, "What do you mean?  Kupo?  Is everything okay?"

"I don't know, kupo…I think something is wrong with Mikoto…" Mogsam said slowly, handing him the letters that everyone had written to be sent out.

"Hmm…" Artemecian thought for a moment before saying anything.  "Well, I'm not doctor, kupopo, but do you know of anything that she really likes to do?"

"Not really…" the moogle admitted, looking at the tile floor.

Both were silent as they thought between themselves.  Slowly, Artemecian started, almost in a whisper, "Mojito once commented on how much she likes to read Lord Avon's works, kupo."

"Yes, but I believe she's read most of the books in the Palace library!  Kupo!"

"Then why not buy her a new one?  Kupo!  That should cheer her up and keep her happy for at least a little while until you can figure out what's really wrong with her."

"That's a pretty good idea," Mogsam admitted.  "But Daguerreo is so far away, kupopo!  Especially to fly!" 

"Yeah, well, lucky for you I've already been to Daguerreo on my mail-run.  I checked this out for myself, but maybe Mikoto should have it instead, kupo."

"Are you sure?" 

"Yeah, but you get to turn it back in after a week, kupo," the purple moogle laughed.  Mogsam smiled and nodded, grateful for his friend's kindness.  "Anyway, here's your weekly mail.  You seem to be quite popular with the moogles, kupopo!" 

"Actually, it's Mikoto.  She just loves to hear what's going on outside the Palace, kupo, so she writes to almost every moogle in every town."

"Why doesn't she go see for herself, kup-kupo?"

Mogsam knew the real reason, but he was not for sure whether or no the should tell Artemecian.  So, instead he bluntly said, "A medical condition."

"Oh, well tell Ms. Mikoto that I said get well soon, kupo!"

"Sure," he smiled, taking the handful of letters and book from him.  Artemecian hoisted his knapsack up higher on to his shoulder and with some difficulty flew out the window.

Quickly, Mogsam looked through the letters and separated them into piles.  As usual, the majority of them went to Mikoto.  Excitedly, he flew up the staircase with everything in tow.  In his eagerness to get to the study he dropped several letters, but decided not to get them until later.  He could not wait to see the smile on Mikoto's face when she saw the new book.

He was finally there.  Despite his attempt to quietly open the door, it creaked very loudly.  When he looked up he saw Mikoto's lifeless stare fixed on him.  "Hey Mikoto!" he stuttered, "Look what Artemecian brought, kupo!" Smiling forcedly, he held up all the letters and dumped them on the desk in front of her.

"Thank you," she said monotonously.

"And!" he added in quickly, "Artemecian also sent a surprise for you!  Ta-da!" Mogsam yelled holding out the book.

Though her facial expression remained stoic, he could see her eyes light up, and that was enough for him.  Now beaming at his success, he dropped the book into her lap and ran out of the room to start gathering the fallen letters.

A few days had passed since Artemecian had dropped by.  Mojito had returned from Burmecia and with him he brought food, news and a desire to speak with Mikoto.  All this time she locked herself in the study with the book, only coming out to use the bathroom and occasionally to eat.

As Mojito made his way to the study Mogsam stopped him.  "I wouldn't go in there, kupo," he warned.

"Why not?" 

"She's been acting strange.  She hasn't talked to anyone for two straight days!  Kupopo!  All she's done is read, sleep and eat!  Kupo!"

"I still want to talk to her.  I promised I would bring back news, and I did!"

"Okay, but I'm warning you, she has not been herself, kupo."

Almost as if it were on cue, a thud came from behind the study door.  Both moogles looked at each other and simultaneously ran to open the door.  "Mikoto?  Are you all right, kupo?  Did you hurt yourself?" Mojito asked as soon as the door flung open.

Mikoto sat in the leather study chair once again, almost as if she had never moved, and maybe she didn't.  Mojito sighed and wiped his brow with his paw.  "You sure scared us!  What happened, kupo?" 

"It tried to make me cry," she said monotonously.

"Wha-?" Mogsame looked confused around the room.  "What 'tried to make you cry'?"  Mikoto did not answer; instead she turned the chair to face away from the two moogles.  Finally, Mogsam's eye landed on the familiar book and he gasped.  It had obviously been thrown across the room and had lost quite a few pages during the trip.

Mow Mojito was extremely confused.  Why would she worry about crying so much?  Why would she throw and ruin something that was not even hers?  "Is there anything you want to talk about?  Kupopo?" 

Her eyes welled up but she quickly wiped the tears away and sniffled, "I couldn't without crying."

"What's so bad about crying?  Is it really such a bad thing?" Mojito asked quietly.

Mikoto bit her lower lip and waited for her emotional wall to build back up.  "Yes," she finally sighed.  "If you want to know why, then you may read for yourself."  She stood up and took the 'Basic Magic' book from a bookshelf.  "You will find the answers in the notes."

"Huh?" Mogsam inquired loudly.

"I'm leaving…" she said quietly.

"Where are you going, kupo?" 

"We're running low on money, and we'll have to pay that library fine," she sighed.  "I'll go collect some money from the Auction House.  I need to get away anyway.  I'll stay in the Treno mansion for awhile, until I can set things straight in my head."  Then, without saying anymore, she left the study, leaving the moogles standing there, holding the book with dumbstruck faces.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

That's it!  Sorry that it isn't a very long chapter, you'll just have to deal with it.  Lol.  u.u The next chapter may be more exciting.  We don't know yet, but we're planning on introducing a new character!  Yay!  ^_^   Hopefully the wait won't be as long.  Ja ne until next time everyone!


	3. The Show Must Go On

A/N:  Hi everyone!  Aren't you glad this one didn't take as much time to post?  Hehe.  ^o^  Sorry, we're going to try to not take so long to update.  Anyway!  I have a question for all of you writers out there!  Lately, I (Anna) have been thinking about a story but since we have so many fics that we're working on, I don't have the time to write it!!  Is anyone out there interested in writing a Kuja/Hilda fic?  ^o^  Hehe, as bad as it sounds if you really think into it, then it wouldn't be such a bad story!  I mean, Cid cheated on her with someone from the pub, why couldn't she get even?  We're probably going to end up writing one some day anyway.  But I just wanted to see if anyone shared my thoughts.  Heh.  Okay, here's the chapter you've been waiting for!  ENJOY!

**Tereterhomdark2003: **No, I'm sorry, Zidane and Kuja won't be coming back physically.  They will be mentioned and appear briefly in dreams and other subconscious…things (for lack of a better word).

**Angel of Death 87: **I seem to be very good at making people hate Garland.  Hehe.  

**Jkateel: **I read in your bio that you are a comic book artist.  That's really cool!  Do you draw/write American comic books or mangas?

Chapter Three

Mikoto docked the Red Rose and got off.  Treno had indeed grown since she had last been there.  The airship dock was its newest addition because of the overwhelming flock of tourists that visited every year.

            The architecture remained the same as it had always been: breathtaking.  But with the population growth the city experienced, the crime rate increased as well.  It did not matter how many laws the city council passed, there was no way of stopping the thievery.

"Good evening ma'am," a man smiled at her.  "How long will you be docking here?"

"I'm not sure yet," Mikoto answered truthfully.

"Well, you are going to need to pay a docking fee of 1,500 gil and it's 50 more gil for every day you're here."

"I have no money."

"What!?" he exclaimed, looking up from his clipboard.  "Then I'm afraid I cannot allow you to park your airship here!"

"I will pay the fee if you put it on a tab for me.  The reason I'm here is to collect money."

The man looked at her awkwardly, "You mean a pretty and innocent-looking thing like you takes up prostitution?"

"No."

"Then how?  Your only other options are stealing and gambling!"

"I own the Auction House," she stated monotonously.

"Oh!  I am terribly sorry!" he bowed deeply as if to emphasize his statement, "Of course I'll put it on a tab for you Ms. Tribal!" The man scribbled something down on a piece of paper and pointed her to the exit.

"That will take you to the front gate of the city, then I'm sure you can find your way from there."

It had been such a long time since Mikoto had last been to Treno.  She still vaguely knew her way around, but so many things had changed.  For starters, more streets were added on, making the city even more confusing, and the old part of town, even the most beautiful buildings, such as the Card Stadium and Queen Stella's Palace, had become slums.  Also, all Gaians were now expected to carry around some form of identification, though this rule had been passed only about fifty years ago.  Though she would have rather not had an I.D., the law was enforced so harshly that she did not have much of a choice.

"Hey, sweetie!" a man catcalled.  He was leaning against a light pole with a toothpick protruding from his mouth.  "Wanna come over here and keep me company?" 

Mikoto ignored him and continued to walk away.  "Hey!  Woman!  Don't you try to get away!" he yelled after her.  "You know you want to!"  She felt disgusted by the man, but tried to block these feelings.  The punk reached out to grab her wrist, but she agilely evaded it, so fast it seemed as if she disappeared all together.

"What the-?"

Suddenly, she was behind him.  She pulled his arm behind his back to where he was wincing in pain.  "Leave me alone," she said eerily.  His eyes widened and he nodded.

"Y-Yes ma'am!" 

She let go of his arm and continued to follow the cobblestone street that led to the Auction House.  She managed to make it there without anyone else bothering her. 

When she finally arrived at her destination, she was tired and ready to get the money so that she could get back to the mansion to sleep.  However there was one problem; a guard was standing in front of the double doors.  "Halt, missy," he said, holding his arm out to block her.  "Where do you think you're going?" 

"Inside the Auction House."

"I'm sorry, but no thieves allowed."

It took everything in her to keep her feelings in check after _that _comment.  Her tail swished agitatedly under her cloak as she thought of what she could possibly say.  "I need to speak to the manager of this establishment."

"Can I see some I.D. please?" 

Mikoto sighed.  She always hated this part.  Casually she reached into the back pocket of her pink skirt and pulled out a small leather wallet.  Previously it had been Zidane's, but obviously he didn't need it anymore.  The wallet was nearly empty; it had only a few gil and her identification, which was several centuries old and needed renewing.  She handed it over to the man and he scanned over it.

"Wait!  This can't be right!" he exclaimed as he read it over.  "What exactly does D.O.A. mean?" 

"Date of awakening."

"So, basically date of birth…" he gave the identification back.  "Nice try, but sorry."

"What?" 

"First of all, this is not a current ID.  Plus, according to this, you're over five hundred years old."

"Five hundred and twenty three to be precise," she said coolly.

"You don't look a day older than sixteen!" 

Mikoto merely shrugged.  "That's my picture is it not?"

"It isn't like I've never seen a fake I.D."  The man rolled his eyes.  "Oh brother, when will you teenagers learn that you can't outsmart those superior to you?"

Mikoto chewed on her lip.  She needed some way to prove to this man that she was really a member of the Tribal family.  "Do you know what the Tribal family trait is?  Or have you not been a security guard long enough to hear?"

At this the guard seemed taken aback. "I'll have you know that I've been a security guard for almost two years now!  And my boss told me that all the Tribals have tails like that of a monkey!"

The blonde Genome lifted her cloak so that her tail swung into view.  The man seemed stunned at this, but his expression soon melted and he smiled at her.  "It's fake.  I'll bet it is a fake tail,' he jeered.

"It is not!" she protested.  She was starting to feel a bit impatient, but quickly dismissed the emotion.

"Then you'll have to prove it," he smiled lecherously, "Go ahead, turn around."

She didn't know what to do.  She needed the money, but she would not put up with being molested for it.  The poor girl felt so alone and confused, yet she was not supposed to express emotions, otherwise it would all be over.  Her promise to Zidane would be a lie.  Just when she thought her head would explode with thoughts the door opened and an old, fragile-looking man stepped out.

"Mikoto?  Is that you?" he asked, pushing his thick glasses further up on to his nose.  "How long has it been?"

"Almost fifty years," she said.  This caused the guard's jaw to drop.  "Normally when I'm here you're off traveling and your brother is here instead."

"So, I suspect you wish to make a withdrawal?"

"Yes, Mr. Jenkins."

"Well, by all means!  Come in!  Come in!" he opened the door wider and motioned for her to enter.  As she did so, she snatched her I.D. from the loosened grasp of the door guard.  He seemed nothing short of horrified as he watched her walk inside.

After the old man shut the door he looked at her, "Next time just ask for me or my brother," he whispered.  "Now Rudy is going to be asking a lot of questions about you and your age." To specify who Rudy was, he jerked his head in the direction of the door guard.

Outside of Gaia, the only humans to know of her condition were the Jenkinses.  Their family business was to manage the Auction House, so they were very familiar with the Tribals _and _their inherited problems, and they were sworn to secrecy not to tell anyone.  Mr. Jenkins opened the door to the main room and instantly the sound was tremendous.  Nobles were bidding on rare, yet useless items and the auctioneer was talking so fast that Mikoto barely understood what he was saying.

"In here!" he yelled over the commotion, and then he ducked inside his office.  Mikoto followed him.  Inside his office was a beautiful mahogany desk with scattered papers all over it.  Behind it was a giant bookshelf, but instead of books it held folders that had sale histories inside them.

"We're running out of items to auction off," he said as he sat down in office chair.  "You may have to go treasure hunting."

"How soon?"  It would not be her first treasure hunt, but the world only had so much treasure.  Still, there were many places to travel, but that meant she had to be around a lot of people.  Something she wasn't comfortable with.

"I would say you have a few more months before you need to worry about anything.  I'll contact you.  You still use Mognet, right?" 

"Yes."

"I'll send you a letter then," he smiled warmly.  Mikoto smiled back, though hers, he could tell, was empty.  "So, how much money will you be taking out?"

The Genome thought for a bit, she did not want to carry a large sum of money around this town.  She would withdraw more money when she left for the Desert Palace again.  "I'll be staying in Treno for a while, is it okay if I make small withdrawals every once in a while?" 

"Of course!" he exclaimed.  "How much do you need to start out with?"

"I think 1,500 gil will do for now," she said.

Mr. Jenkins scribbled something on to a piece of paper, then looked back up to her.  "Okay, follow me then."  He led her out of the office and through the main hall.  Once again it seemed as if she was bombarded with noise.  On the other side of the room was another door that was covered in gold padlocks.  The old man pulled a huge ring of keys from his coat pocket and unlocked each individual lock.  The thick oak door opened only to display a gigantic metal safe.  As he entered the combination he smiled, "Still remains the only business in Treno that has never been robbed successfully."

"That's good news."

Once the safe was opened, Mikoto's eyes scanned the inside.  Piles of gold coins were stacked from wall to wall.  Silently Mr. Jenkins counted out the right amount of money and put it in a small leather pouch.

"Hurry to the mansion," he whispered into her ear after he shut all of the doors.  "Do you need an escort?"

"Um…" She really did not know.  Treno seemed to be a lot more dangerous since she had last been there.  Plus she did not want to be alone with that guard again.

"Who would be escorting me?"

Mr. Jenkins thought for a bit.  "I'll have my son walk you home when he returns.  You may wait in my office until he gets here."

"No sir, that is quite all right.  The mansion is not too far away.  I'll be fine."

"Okay then, stop by soon!" he called after the Genome's retreating figure.

"As usual, it was dark when she exited the Auction House.  She murmured a protect spell under her breath, hoping she wouldn't need it; the mansion was only down the street.  Local Treno residents thought the mansion to be haunted.  As far as they knew, no one lived there, plus it _looked _haunted.  Kuja had been the one to design it, so it undoubtedly appeared eccentric.

The mansion itself was brick and had many gargoyles that served as water spouts on the roof.  Its yard was surrounded by a wrought-iron fence that enhanced the threatening appearance.  Along the path that led to the door were many dead shrubs.  It was apparent that the house hadn't been taken care of in a _long _time.  _Oh well, it will give me something to do to keep my mind off of things.  _

She opened the fence and walked across the overgrown path.  The house had a dull yellow aura around it, the result of a very old, yet very strong, protect spell that Kuja had cast on it.  This prevented windows from shattering due to any rocks thrown my mischievous children.

As she approached the door, she pulled a single gold key from a pocket in her cloak and turned the key inside the lock.  The door opened with a terrible creak to expose the entryway.  The smell of decaying wood and dust made its way to her nose.

"Mikoto?  Is it really you?" a squeaky voice asked.

The poor girl almost jumped out of her skin.  She looked ahead and saw the outlines of two moogles standing in the doorframe.  "Moogerz?  Mogzika?" Just to make sure it was really them, she turned on the light.  The sudden brightness made everyone wince until their eyes adjusted.

"Is really is you!  KUPO!!" one of the moogles exclaimed.  As it jumped into the air, dust that had been collecting in its fur was released.  Indeed, it looked comical that two moogles who had once been a dull pink were now gray.

"So, I see you have not cleaned since I last visited."  Both moogles shook their heads, thus creating another cloud of dust.

Mikoto coughed, "Is the bedroom at least acceptable?"

"Truthfully, we don't know, kupo.  It's been a while since we went up there.  Kupopo."

"Oh man…" she said, rolling her eyes.  "Tomorrow is going to be _lots _of fun…"

"Why?  Kupo?  What's the plan?" Mogzika asked.

"We're cleaning."

Both moogles gasped and covered their mouths with their paws.  "But we haven't in over a century!  Kupo!"

"Yeah!  We've probably forgotten!"

Mikoto shrugged and walked up the stairs, leaving footprints in the dust collected on the floor.  "_And, _maybe we'll have enough time to give you two a bath."

*          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

I hope everyone enjoyed it!  If you haven't noticed, most of the characters are moogles.  We decided to lengthen it somewhat, and not introduce the original character for a while.  Maybe the chapter after next…if we're lucky.  Heh.  Please leave us a review!  Flames and feedback are appreciated!  


	4. One Vision

**Dark Ice Dragon and HANDHELD Uber Rei Model 05: **Once again, this is just my opinion.  Hehe.  In the game, Eiko says that moogles are fairies, and when I hear fairies I think of elves.  (Haha, this is what Tolkien does to you).  Elves are immortal and can only die of a broken heart or if they're killed.  Other than that, they are completely prone to living forever.

**Jkateel: **If you ever do anything like post your manga/comics online, be sure to let me know!  I'm very interested in that sort of thing and I'd love to see them!  (I got a book on how to draw manga for Christmas, maybe I'll figure out how to draw it before I die.  ^o^) 

**SuicidalMage: **_Another_ bottomless pit?  Wow…   But let's put it this way, if I die, then who's going to finish the story?  

A/N: Well, I know that I promised a bunch of people that I'd have this up on Christmas, but I lied.  Don't get me wrong, I had every intention of actually putting it up, but (as most of you know) I can't upload the stories at my house because of my computer.  The plan was to upload the fourth chapter when I got to my Grandparent's house on Christmas.   BUT!  I…kindasortaleftmydiskathomebymycomputer….  ::Looks around nervously::

Sorry, but here it is!  My mom decided to go back to my Grandparent's house today so that her mom could help her figure out her checkbook, (she made a mistake somewhere) so I followed!  And this time, I brought my disk!  Wahoo!

Just a quick note! Normally Noelle (my Beta-Reader) does the editing for this story, but she only was able to edit my rough draft (the handwritten one…heh) So, based on what she wrote in my notebook as corrections, I typed this up.  So, if there are any grammar/spelling errors, please forgive me and be sure to include what/where you found it in the story.  I will try to fix it ASAP.  I edited the final copy all by myself with the help of Buddy (my Grandma's wiener dog).  ^o^  Hopefully I did a decent enough job.

Keep Yourself Alive: Chapter Four

She felt the flames lick her face as she ran back inside the burning house.  Screams echoed in all directions as Genomes ran for cover.  In the front of the village a gigantic man with blue skin and red dreadlocks was shouting orders.  "This city must be empty!  Everyone out!"  Next to him a little girl with purple hair was going ballistic.

"We have to hurry back to the ship!" she cried, tugging on his green shirt.

"First and foremost we have to evacuate the city.  You heard Zidane."

The child's terrified eyes swept over the scene of chaos and destruction.  Tears came to her eyes and she looked up at the man.  "Is this what it looked like when Madin Sari burned?"

"I can't say," he said coolly, with no hint of emotion.

The child flinched at his cold statement, "Oh, I'm soooo sorry for bothering you.  Meanie!" then she took off for the village.

"Eiko!  Wait!  You'll get yourself killed!" the man called after her.  As much as he tried to follow her path with his eyes, it wasn't long before she was lost in the mass of the panicking Genome citizens.

Suddenly, Mikoto heard her door fly open.  "Anyone in here?  Anyone ALIVE in here!?" the purple-haired girl, supposedly  named Eiko, stood in the doorway.  "Hey!  It's you!  The perv!" she exclaimed, pointing a finger at the blond teenager.

Mikoto looked up from her handful of possessions.  This was no time to talk, the fire was spreading through the house and she needed to get out.  

"Well, even if you ARE perverted or disturbed in any way, then I can forgive you.  'Cuz Amarant is ten times worse!"

Mikoto cocked her head to the side and looked at the girl confusedly.  Why was this Gaian child communicating with her when there was an order to evacuate?

"Hey!  Lady!  Can't you hurry any faster?  There's fire here.  FIRE!  It can hurt you!  PAIN!" Eiko was speaking slowly and emphasizing certain words.  While Mikoto knew she meant well, she still found it annoying.

"I'm trying to…" she answered in her eerie monotonous voice, reaching for a trinket on her smoldering desk.

"God, you're just creepy!  C'mon!  Let's go!  I wanna get off this planet BEFORE it blows up!" Before Mikoto could wrap her fingers around the item, she felt a small hand grab her by the wrist.  "I don't care anymore.  You're coming with me!  I'm not going back to the Invincible alone!"

Allowing herself to be dragged away by the little girl, she inquired, "The Invincible?  What are you doing with Lord Garland's most prized airship?"

"Garland?  Psh!  He's dead!"

"Dead!?" Her creator?  The father figure who had protected her since her awakening?  The man who single-handedly brought her life was never to be seen or heard from again?  She couldn't believe it!  Why should she?  Something inside told her that Lord Garland couldn't die, not completely anyway.

"Oh my God!  Get down!" Eiko shrieked, yanking Mikoto down against the street.  Instinctively, the Genome held her hands over her head as another tower exploded and crumbled nearby.  "Jeez!  What exactly is Kuja trying to prove!?" Eiko cried, jumping back up after the shock from the explosion had subsided.

"Kuja?  He's back!?  Where is he!?" Mikoto hadn't seen her eldest brother in years, and the thought of seeing him again excited her.  However, Eiko merely stared at her looking astounded.  "Well?  Where is he?"

"Up there…" The purple-haired girl helped the Genome back up and pointed skyward.  For a second, she was confused.  Why would Kuja be in the sky?  He couldn't fly!  But, apparently she was mistaken.

Truthfully, she would probably have never guessed it was her brother had this Gaian child not said so.  His formal Terran clothing was tattered and torn, his hair and fur had turned from silver to a scarlet red.  As the spheres of energy shot from his hands, Mikoto noticed that his face was that of a tortured soul.  Just looking at him, she knew that something had happened; something terrible.

One thing remained a mystery to her: why would he destroy his home planet, his father, even his own sister?

"Let's go!  Enough staring!  We have to get to safety!" Eiko begged, pulling Mikoto toward the town entrance.  Finally, she gave in completely and the two girls ran to the docked airship.

Once the two made it on board she could see the back of Zidane.  "Everybody on?" he called out.  His blue eyes finally landed on her.  "Mikoto!  You're all right!" he ran forward and hugged her.  She wasn't sure what to think of this gesture, so she did nothing, just stood there.  "I thought you weren't gonna make it!  You weren't on the ship and I saw the town go up in flames…"  Suddenly he was at a loss for words, so he continued to hold tightly on to his long lost sister.

Someone cleared their throat loudly from behind.  It was Eiko.  "I see, so you're both perverted," she sneered with her hands on her hips.  Behind the child stood a woman Mikoto knew as Dagger, she looked very confused.

"No, no, no!" he laughed happily.  "Everyone, this is my sister, Mikoto."

"Oh!  So you aren't having an affair with her?"

"WHAT!!?  What made you think I was having an affair?" he asked, looking at all of his friends.

"Oh, who knows?" Freya spoke up.  "Could it be the fact that you're a helpless womanizer that used to try and pick up any girl who was young, naïve, and willing to go with you?"

"Hey!  That was the old me!  This is the new me!"

"So, are you now picking up girls that aren't willing?" Vivi snickered.

Zidane pretended to be hurt, "I can't believe you would say such mean things to me!  I have been nothing but nice to all of you!"

"Zidane!" a new voice blurted out.  A man dressed in armor from head to foot came running out of the cockpit.  "I need your help!  I can't figure out how to get this craft off the ground!  If we don't hurry, we'll be sitting ducks!"

"Calm down, Rusty!  I'm comin'!" Zidane yelled, running into the cockpit after the knight.  As he ran passed Dagger he made sure to slap her butt.

"Wha-?  Zidane!" she yelled after him.  Soon everyone, including Mikoto, was settled in the cockpit.

"You wouldn't know how to operate it, would you?" the knight interrogated her.

"N-No…"

"Garland never told you anything about it?"

"I don't think so…"

"How can you not think so!?  You're a Genome aren't you!?  You have to know somet-"

"Oh my God!" Dagger shrieked, "Incoming energy blasts!"

"Zidane!  Hurry up and get us outta here!" Eiko pleaded.

The airship jolted and shook as the engine started up.  "Everyone!  Hold on to something!  We'll be taking a few hits!" Zidane yelled over the commotion.  Instantly, each person held onto an object near to him or her.

Mikoto clutched onto a bar so tightly, her already pale knuckles turned even whiter.  She shut her eyes tight.  If this was the end, she didn't want to see it.  The entire craft shook violently a second time, throwing everyone forward.  No matter how tightly she gripped the bar, the force shocked her and caused her to let go.  She was on the floor, with a sharp pain in her back.  Someone was standing over her saying her name.

"Mikoto!?  Mikoto?"

"Mikoto!  Wake up!" she heard a high voice demand, yet she kept her eyes shut.  Kuja's hatred, Terra in flames…she didn't want to see it.  "Open your eyes!  Are you all right?"

Mogzika turned to her cohort; she was at a loss.  Mikoto wasn't moving or responding, but she was still breathing.  

"Okay, this is going to be our desperate attempt to wake her up, kupo," Moogerz sighed.  "Turn the hose on her."

Mogzika did as she was told.  Mikoto sputtered and choked then she darted back into a sitting position.  Her eyes blurred over, she couldn't make anything out.  A wide spectrum of colors invaded her senses, and when her eyes could focus again she realized that she was covered in mud and sitting in the garden.  "Did I fall asleep while I was gardening?" she asked, placing a cold, pale hand to her forehead.

"Yup, kupo."

"Was it a bad dream, kupopo?  You seemed scared."

"It was more like…a memory."

Both of the moogles knew that she did not want to discuss it any further, therefore they did not push the subject.  They had received a letter via Mognet from Mojito saying that she was afraid to express emotions, and the reasons behind her thoughts.  However, had she seen her face while she slept she would realize that there was no way she could stop them.  As hard as Mikoto could try, it was impossible for her to not feel or express emotions as long as she possessed a soul.  

"Hey, Mikoto.  You know how you said that you needed to go treasure hunting for items to sell in the Auction House?"

"Yeah, I'll have to worry about that later though."

"Well, we found a way where you may not have to go treasure hunting!  Kupo!"

"Really now?  What could that be?"

"Moogerz found a bunch of stuff in the storage room that can be sold, and they all look really valuable!  Kupopo!"

"That sounds good.  You want to take me there, Moogerz?"

"Kupo!" the moogle smiled and grasped Mikoto's cold hand with its paw.  

The three treaded back inside the mansion.  Things definitely seemed a lot less dirty when the house was lit up.  In a few days, the group had managed to completely turn the mansion around.  The cobwebs were cleared out, and almost every room had been dusted.  Just a few rooms remained, however they mutually decided to work on the outside of the house before conquering the rest of the inside.

The moogle led the Genome up the wooden staircase.  Each step creaked as weight was put on it.  Moogerz led her to a room at the end of the hallway that Mikoto had not been in to clean yet.  Thus she knew that it had to look like a nightmare inside.  The door creaked open, and immediately the surroundings looked like the perfect setting for a horror movie.

Dust had accumulated in the most unpleasant way over the years.  Cobwebs hung everywhere, and mice scurried around on the floor, trying to find a place to hide now that they had been found.  The black curtains in the back of the room had faded to gray were and terribly moth-eaten.  "Well, what do you think?"

"I think I'm going to be sick.  We have to clean this!?"

"No…look!  Over there!" the moogle pointed a pink paw over to a wall, where several objects were hanging.  More were displayed around the room on pedestals.  Mikoto felt her breath escape her; it was magnificent!  Not something she'd expect to find in such a dingy room.

"How'd you find these?"

"We were looking for some clean towels.  We didn't find any, kupo," Mogzika laughed.  That did not surprise Mikoto; there was not one clean thing in there.  She approached the wall and rubbed her finger down one of the dust-covered, metallic objects, leaving a trail of clean silver.

"Well, let's get some rags to dust these off!" 

The moogles had come across Zidane's collection of weapons and armor.  He had saved everything from his trip around the world that he could.  Not only his weapons, but everyone else's as well.  From Dagger's simple rod, to the beautiful and well constructed Ultima Weapon.  There was no doubt in Mikoto's mind that auctioning these off would bring in a fortune.  However, the longer she spent cleaning them off to make them presentable, the more she thought against it.

She could remember Zidane's struggles with his memories.  A part of him wanted to remember everything that was taken away.  Another part of him knew that memories were too painful, and anything that reminded him of his friends made his heart break when he looked at it.  So, he packed up everything he owned that reminded him of his past and took them all to the Treno mansion, somewhere he didn't go very often.

Mikoto also remembered going to Treno with him once after they were first reunited.  Together they picked up some money from the Auction House and went to the mansion to get some sleep.  She was awoken in the middle of the night when she had heard sobbing coming from down the hall.  The night air was cold and she didn't want to leave the warmth of the blankets, yet she got up anyway.  She shivered as she wrapped a robe around her shoulders and slipped her feet into some slippers.  She padded down the hall and opened the door to the storage room.

Zidane sat on the floor in his boxers and T-shirt, clutching a teddy bear.  His face was buried into the stuffed animal's fur and his body shook violently as floods of tears streamed down his face.  Mikoto felt her heart sink; she knew she could never take his friends' place.  She wondered what it was like; loving someone so much that you would be willing to give your life for them.  What it was like to love someone so much, and then have them cruelly torn away.

"Zidane…?" she had asked quietly.

He jolted up and turned his head around to look at her.  "I thought you were sleeping," he said as he hastily wiped his face.  

"I heard you crying."

He couldn't argue with her and claim he was not, she had seen him with her own eyes.  Blushing slightly, he pulled away from the teddy bear and stood up.  "It was Amethyst's.  I gave it to her for her second birthday."  He handed her the bear and she fumbled around with it.  It was flimsy with old age and missing a buttoned eye.

In the room that held all of Zidane's memories, Mikoto remembered how terrible she had felt when she had seen her brother cry like that.  She remembered how important everything in that room was to him.  She couldn't bring herself to sell any of it.

With a sigh, she looked at her moogle friends.  "I'll just have to go treasure hunting.  I can't sell these."

"Are you kidding!!?  There's enough in here for the Jenkinses to be happy with for a looong time!  Kupo!" Mogzika exclaimed.

"Perhaps, but I still won't sell them."

The moogles looked at each other, then back to Mikoto, who was polishing an old sword.  To them, everything in there looked like junk, valuable junk, but junk nonetheless.  Obviously, to Mikoto everything had a sentimental value of some sort.

When the three had finished their cleaning they walked out of the storage room, each one was dead tired.  Under Mikoto's arm she carried a few things she had found in the stacks of boxes.  A black cloak that Zidane had worn when he returned from the Iifa Tree, a few rings that held magical powers, an old and unused journal, and the teddy bear.

Once she arrived in her quarters she situated all of her new belongings around the room.  She threw away her old cloak, it was torn and faded from being used and washed so much, and then hung Zidane's old one in the closet.  She placed the rings in an old hand-carved jewelry box, set the journal on her beside table, and lastly sat the teddy bear on a shelf over-looking the room.  The bear looked so lonely, as if it had been waiting for centuries to be held by someone again.  Fighting to hold back tears she reached up and took the toy back down from the self and hugged it to her chest.

"I'm happy for him…I really am," she sobbed quietly.  "I only wanted him for selfish reasons.  He's happy now.  He's with them…" But as much as she told herself that she was happy, she knew she was just lying to herself.  She was lonely, just like Amethyst's old teddy bear.

_Pull yourself together, Mikoto!  What about Kamikaze? _a voice reprimanded her from the back of her head.  She gasped and dropped the bear, which made a soft squeak when it hit the tile floor.  She shook her head as if to shake all of her emotions away and quickly ran out of the room, leaving the toy behind on the cold stone floor.

"Mikoto?  Is something wrong?  Looks like you've seen a ghost, kupo!" Moogerz asked as she watched the Genome sprint out of her room.  Mikoto, however, did not stop.  She continued to run down the stairs.

"What was that all about?  Kupo?" Mogzika asked.

"Who knows?  Mojito said she was acting strange."

"Shouldn't we go after her?"

"Kupo…" Moogerz shrugged and sighed, "let's hurry and try to catch up."

As fast as they could, the two moogles flew down the stairs after her.  They did not have to go very far before they found Mikoto.  She was laying on a couch, facedown.

"Is everything all right, Mikoto?"

Mikoto lifted her face off of the pillow, her blond hair was falling over her eyes, "I'll be fine."  She then rolled over and sat up.  "I'm just…stressed."

"We can tell!" Moogerz said loudly, but was rammed in the side by Mogzika's elbow.  Mogzika shot her counterpart a look that said, 'that sure didn't help!'

"Seriously, you two.  Don't worry about me.  I'm a big girl, I can take care of myself."

"We know that.  But just remember we're here if you need to talk!"

Mikoto smiled at the idea of having a moogle psychiatrist.  "Okay, I'll keep that in mind."

The moogles smiled back at her and Moogerz spoke up.  "Why don't you get some rest?  Kupo?  We'll take care of the garden."

"But you still have to help us with the basement tomorrow!"

"It's a deal."  

Holding a hand to her forehead, she walked up the spiral staircase.  Rest sounded wonderful.  Every inch of her body ached from cleaning and lack of sleep.  The door to her room was already ajar from her flight.

When she entered, she picked up the bear that she had hastily dropped in effort to get out.  Her eyes felt so heavy, she knew her body was screaming for sleep.  Instead of placing the stuffed animal on the shelf, she collapsed into her bed, holding the toy to her heart.

"That will be 5,000 gil, Miss Tribal," a plump man said, extending his pudgy hand.  Mikoto pressed the currency into his palm and boarded the Red Rose, pulling the hood of Zidane's cloak over her head.  "Thank you, Miss Tribal!  Come back soon!" he called after her.

She knew she wouldn't be gone long. Already she had spent almost three months in the mansion.  She was used to the bustle of Treno, and none of the criminals dared mess with her.  She was too fast for them if they tried to harass her anyway.

However, the mansion had run out of food and Mikoto was sick of eating all of the cheap carbohydrates and 'crap food' that Treno had to offer.  She was headed to Lindblum for groceries and to put out a few wanted ads for treasure hunters

Lindblum would be a welcome change of pace for her.

*          *          *

The next chapter, yes, I promise this time, is when I'll be introducing my original character!  Until then, I'll leave you all hanging.  Please be sure to leave me a review and as always flames and feedback are greatly appreciated.  And, again I apologize for my slowness.  But you have to admit, I'm not as slow as _some_ authors….but I know I'm definitely in their league.  Haha.  Review please! 

(((Guess what I got for Christmas??  Most of you know that I'm in love with the band Queen from the 70's/80's.  Well, I got a DVD of them live at Wembley stadium!  Wahoo!  And I got a new CD of theirs, plus a T-shirt.  I'm all Queened out!  Yay!  **_LONG LIVE CLASSIC ROCK_**!!!!))) 


	5. Somebody to Love

**ThunDaGa: **Wow, you sure know how to threaten someone!  Haha.  I don't like yans that much (when I was trying to find the friendly yan I was killed off many times by the not-so-friendly ones).  ^o^

**Elendil Star-Lover: **I completely agree.  I hate the slang that people use today, mainly it's because I can be such a grammar freak (as long as it isn't me speaking…kinda hard to explain).  Anyway, slang bothers me to no end.  I don't use it, and most of my friends don't use it.  -.-  For which I am truly grateful.

**Jkateel: **The good news is that I am getting better at drawing anime/manga.  The bad news is that I'm having problem with expressions and hair.  Do you have any tips?

**Tereterhomdark2003: **I will promise right here and now that Mikoto is and always will be the main character in this story.  However, because in order to make an actual story, there needs to be characters, so, please, bear with me.  There will be quite a few original characters, but none of them will ever, ever, ever (quadruple emphasis on ever) take her place.  ^o^

**A/N: **I truly love all of you guys!  ^o^  I think this story has won the award of most violent reviewers, haha!  And I love it!  It keeps me entertained.  ^o^  Sorry it took so long to post.  A friend of ours, Virginia (chocolatecreme06) wrote a poem for this story, so even long after I finished writing it, she was still perfecting her poem.  I'm sure you'll all agree it was worth the wait.  (Vivi (what we call her) is going to be a poet one day!)  Check out more of her poetry on her fictionpress account!

Chapter Five: Somebody to Love

"Come again, Ms. Tribal!" the item shopkeeper called after her.  Mikoto smiled emptily at him and pulled the hood of her cloak over her head.  In her arm she had many fliers and applications.  She was hanging up a lot of them on her own, but a couple shops offered to post them as well.  The papers advertised an expedition for anyone who was interested in going treasure hunting.

In her first day of being in Lindblum, she had managed to conquer the biggest part of the city.  She had fliers stapled everywhere in the Business district.  It was already mid-afternoon, and she was feeling hungry.

Her black cloak flowed behind her as she walked to the air cab station.  Most of the food related shops were in the newly built Industrial district.  She would buy some groceries and then eat at the bar.  Mikoto wasn't in the mood to cook anything for herself.

"Hello ma'am.  Where will I be takin' you?" the air cab engineer asked, tipping his hat.

"The Industrial district, please."

"You've got it," he smiled.  She felt the vessel lift off of the ground and smoothly move forward.  "So what will you be doing in the Industrial district?  There's not much up there.  Are you visiting family?"

"No, just getting some food."

"You live here?  I've never seen you before…"

"No.  I'm here on business."

"Wow…they're getting younger and younger.  Just how old are you?"

"Fifteen," she lied.  Garland built her body to stop aging at fifteen, just like Zidane stopped at seventeen and Kuja and twenty.

"So where are you originally from?" Mikoto understood he was trying to be polite, but she didn't like talking to strangers.  Unlike Zidane, she was very anti-social.

"Around Dali," she lied again.

"Ah, so you're a country girl.  How do you like the city?"

"It's nice."

"Dali…I have some family down there.  _Beautiful _town: great scenery.  Very friendly people down there."

"Yes."

Finally, she felt the air cab slowing down.  The craft jerked forward lightly and came to a complete stop.  "Enjoy your stay in Lindblum!  And be careful in this district after dark," he smiled.

"I will."

The engineer pulled a lever that opened the doors and let her get off.  When she had gotten completely out an old woman stepped in.  

"Why, hello Mrs. Johansson!" the man said happily.  "How's your husband's broken ankle?"  then the doors shut and muffled the rest of the conversation.

Mikoto rolled her eyes as she walked up the stairs leading to the district's square.  The statue of Cid XII still stood proudly in the middle of the square.  Zidane used to talk about him.  Mikoto wished she had met him.  He sounded like such a wonderful man.

The Genome exhaled and looked around.  The grocery store wasn't too far away.  A sign hung outside of the door, saying: Sale!  All Mandragora products 50% off!

"Sounds good to me," she said quietly to herself.  

The store was dimly lit, noisy and full of customers.  "Welcome!" the shopkeeper yelled at her.  "Can I help you?"

"No.  I'll be fine." Mikoto picked up a basket, put her fliers in it then wandered aimlessly around, pulling random products that looked appealing off of the shelves.  Everything in the store looked ten times better than any of the food offered in Treno.  When Mikoto had an assortment of fruits, vegetables, and meat she walked up to the shopkeeper.

"Is this all for you, ma'am?" the woman asked.

"Yes," Mikoto answered.

"Okay, then…" the woman began counting up the prices, "That will be 300 gil."

The blond Genome handed over the money.  As the shopkeeper placed all of the food in bags she asked, "Are you having a party or something?  This sure is a lot of food."

"No."

"Big family?"

"No."

"Oh…well, thanks for coming!"  she smiled, handing Mikoto the bags, then she saw the fliers and applications in the bottom of the basket.  "Are these yours?"

"Yes."

"Would you like me to pass some out?"

"If you don't mind, that would be fine."

"Of course I don't mind."

"Thank you."  Mikoto bowed her head and left.

When she was outside of the shop she noticed the sun had set and the sky was turning a murky shade of purple.  Her stomach grumbled.

_Bobo's bar is just down the street.  That was Zidane's favorite place to eat when he came here.  _Arms laden down with several grocery sacks, she trudged along the road.  She wasn't a block from the bar when she heard fast footsteps coming from behind her.

"EXCUSE ME!" a voice yelled.

Even for as agile as Mikoto was known to be, she couldn't think fast enough to move out of the way and she felt someone slam into her back.  The grocery bags went flying from her grasp as she plummeted to the ground.  Her face had scraped against the concrete but healed immediately, just like all the other times.  

Whoever ran into her had landed on top of her.  "I am _so _sorry!" he said, getting off of her.  "Oh…your groceries!  Here, let me help!" 

She sat up and her hood fell off, allowing her to finally got a good look at the culprit.  He had long shaggy brown hair, dark brown eyes and appeared to be a little older than what she looked to be.  "I didn't mean to knock you down…I was just in a hurry…I'm always late to work and I was determined to get there on time today…" he continued to ramble as he picked up an apple and placed it back inside the bag.

"I-It's okay!  I've got it."

"Nah, it's no problem.  It's my fault you fell in the first place."

He looked at her and smiled, his dark eyes swept over her.  They seemed to freeze her to her spot.  Unlike most people she saw in the city, his smile wasn't forced.  It was a genuine smile.  One that was so pure she wanted to return it with the same feeling behind it.

"Say, you're kinda cute," he said, getting up.  "I'm Ryuu.  What's your name?"  He offered her his hand.  He wore black gloves with the fingers cut off.

Mikoto felt all of the blood rush to her face and turn as red as the apple he had been holding.  She cringed, closed her eyes and grimacing held her hands to her ears.

"Are you all right?" he asked.

Her heart was pounding violently in her chest.  _This is it, _she thought to herself.  This was by far the strongest emotion she had felt since Zidane died.  This would be the emotion that triggered Kamikaze.  _Oh God, just let it be quick.  _A single tear rolled down her cheek.

"You okay?  Can you get up?  Do you need me to carry you?"

Mikoto clutched her heart, then grabbed her groceries and ran to the air cab station.  Having forgotten all notions about food, she was just thankful that she didn't go into Trance.

Ryuu watched her run off, a confused look on his face.  Then he looked at his watch.  "Shit.  That's it.  I'm fired.  The boss'll never let me get away with this one."  He shook his head and started running anew, finally making it into the restaurant he had been working in for the past month.

"Hey, sorry I'm late, but-"

"Glad you could make it, Ryuu.  Your shift started fifteen minutes ago," a bulky man spat.

"I know, Mr. Tonaga.  But let me explain.  You see there was this girl…and-"

"Don't give me that crap, Ryuu!  You're late every day!"

"No I'm serious!  I ran into her and made her drop all of her groceries..."

"You're fired!" the employer yelled, spit flying from his mouth.  

Ryuu cringed.  "Aww…c'mon Mr. Tonaga!  I'll never be late again!"

"That's what you said last time!"

"But I mean it this time!  I really, really do!"

"Get out of my restaurant!"  Without another word of argument, the teenager did as he was told.

"Sheez," Ryuu grumbled, kicking at a rock on the sidewalk.  "Why can't I keep a job for more than two months?"  He kicked the door to the grocery store open.

"Welc-.  Oh, hello, Ryuu," the shopkeeper laughed.  "What can I get for you?"

"A job would be nice."

"Fired again?"

"Yeah, that's the eleventh time this year."

"Hun, I think you may have set some sort of crazy record."

"Maybe.  Hey, d'you have any butter?  Mom wanted me to pick up some on my way home."

"Sure do."  The shopkeeper walked into the back of the shop and returned with a small carton of butter.

"Thanks, Mrs. Gerone."  He slammed five gil on the counter and started to walk away.

"Wait!  Ryuu!  I think I have a solution for your job problem.  I had a strange character come in today.  She left these with me to hand out.  Looks like she's getting a treasure hunting posse together."

"Really!!?"

"Yeah."  Mrs. Gerone handed him a flier and an application.  "According to that, you can either turn the application to me and she'll pick it up, or you can turn it directly in to her.  She's staying in the inn across the street from the air cab station in the Business district."

"M. Tribal…" Ryuu read off of the flier.  "Wow, this is great news!  Thanks again, Mrs. G!"

"Anytime, Ryuu!"

The excited boy ran out of the shop, with the butter and application in tow.  Treasure hunting was something he'd always wanted to do.

4-24

From the start, our fates were set  
Head over heels, heart and soul  
But the fact is I can't have you  
And it's beyond my own control  
  
Yet I wanted so badly to fall into you  
With those eyes as clear as night  
The need for you was overwhelming  
But it was a feeling I'd have to fight  
  
So I made my heart as cold as stone  
And insisted you didn't matter  
Yet your face reappears before me  
As my guard begins to shatter  
  
And then somehow I fell in love  
and you stole my heart away  
And I know I need to take it back  
Yet I want for you to stay  
  
So I'm torn between my one true love  
And the promise that I made  
But that decision just gets harder  
As my defenses slowly fade

So please forgive me for my farewell  
And for everything I did  
I didn't mean to lead you on  
I just want for you to live

The words were scrawled on the first page of Mikoto's journal.  Her first entry was a hastily written poem about the stranger.  His ability to crack her emotional shell scared her, but even then she had an urge, a craving, to see him again.

It wasn't until after she was safe within the walls of her hotel room that she realized she had forgotten to eat.  It was a good thing she was staying in a suite.  In her room she had a small kitchen, a sofa, a radio and a bed.

Still, she didn't feel like cooking, so instead she ate some fresh fruit.  After snacking, she fell into a peaceful sleep, the first one in a long time.

The sleeping Genome was awoken by a persistent beating on her door.

"Hello?  Is anyone in there?  I'm looking for an M. Tribal!" the person on the other side was yelling through the keyhole.

Mikoto tiredly lifted her head, her blond hair was tangled and obstructing her sight.  Hurriedly she tucked a strand behind her ear, enabling her to see the digital clock on her right.  It was almost noon.

"Oh God," she muttered.  Never in her life had she slept in that late, never was she able to.  Her dreams always made sure that she woke up early.

"Hello?" the person continued to beat on her door.

"I'll be there in a minute!" she yelled in the direction of the door.  The knocking stopped abruptly.

"Good!  You _are _there!"

Mikoto sighed and slid into some slippers, then wrapped her robe around her.  As she walked to the door she ran her hands through her hair, getting as many of the tangles out as possible. 

She unlocked the dead bolt on the door and heaved it open.  There on the other side was the very person who she had been thinking about for the majority of the night.  Her heart began racing.

"Hey!  You're th-" he started, pointing a gloved hand at her, but before he could say anything else she slammed the door.  She let out a shuddering breath and leaned her back against the door.

Was it him?  No it couldn't be him because that would be too ironic.  Her mind was playing tricks on her.  That's what she told herself.  Wearily she opened the door again.  Once more the brunette stood on the other side.

"Ya know?  The one I ran into…"  She slammed the door a second time.

"Okay, that was funny the first time.  But now I'm kinda confused…"

Nope, it was him.  There was no doubt that he was the same boy.

"I wanted to turn in my application to you!  Mrs. Gerone at the grocery store gave me this application to go treasure hunting…" the voice continued, despite the fact that a an inch and a half inch of wood separated them.

Her eyes widened even more.  _He wants to go treasure hunting?  There's no way, I couldn't be around him for that long…it would be too dangerous!  _Still, on the other side of the door Ryuu continued to talk.

"…And I got fired from my job yesterday.  But that doesn't mean I wouldn't try my hardest at treasure hunting!!"  

Mikoto took a deep breath and calmed down.  "Please hold on a moment.  I'll be with you shortly," she said professionally, running into her bathroom.  "The door is unlocked, come on in and make yourself at home."  There was no way she was going to let him see her like that again.

She slipped into a pair of jeans, tucking her tail into her right pant leg.  She didn't want anyone to know about it.  After Zidane had been given a proper burial ceremony word had gotten out that he had a sister who looked like a female version of him and had a tail.  The last thing she wanted was for some maniac to do something crazy because of her 'problems'.   

Next, she slipped on a black spaghetti strap that she had recently bought and strapped on Zidane's old belt with the dagger and sheath attached, only feeding it through one belt loop so that it hung off of her hip.  "Keep it together, Mikoto," she told herself.  Her hands gripped the marble sink in the bathroom and she leaned forward until she was inches from the mirror.  "Stay strong.  You can do this."

Calmly she picked up a brush and pulled it through her untidy blond hair.  She lightly placed the brush on the sink and opened the door. 

"Sorry to keep you waiting," she said, avoiding making eye contact.  "Please have a seat and excuse the mess."

"Oh, this is _nothing _compared to my room!" he said, sitting on the unmade bed.

Mikoto sighed and pulled a wooden stool from the kitchen in so that she could sit across from him.  Once she was situated Ryuu handed her the application.  Her clear blue eyes scanned over it.  'Ryuu Lucchesi.  Age 17.  Height 5' 10''…'

"Okay, Mr. Lucchesi," she said, still not looking him in the eye, "I have to interview you, standard procedure."

"All right," he said, gripping the mattress and swinging his legs back and forth.  HE tried to catch her gaze but she was apparently too preoccupied with the application.

"What is your employment history?  How many times have you been involuntarily terminated from an employer?"

"Uh…you mean fired?"

Mikoto nodded. 

"Do you mean in the last year?  Or…ever?"

"Ever," she stated simply.

Ryuu folded his arms across his chest and began thinking and tapping his foot.  "Well…that's pretty hard to answer.  This may take a while."

"Then in the last year."

"Eleven," he smiled uneasily, rubbing the back of his head.  "Um…it's only because I have a tendency of being late…but I try my hardest to be on time!" he added hastily.

Mikoto sighed mentally.  She now had a valid excuse not to hire him.  But she continued the interview to not make this obvious.

"What kind of salary do you think you show start at?"

"Oh, anything is fine really.  Just as long as it's above minimum wage."

"What is the best way to contact you?"

"My house.  The address and phone number are in my contract."

"All right, Mr. Lucchesi.  I think that's about it.  Just one last question."

"I'm ready."

"What is your reason for applying as a treasure hunter?"

Ryuu began fumbling absentmindedly with the zipper on his jacket.  "Well, you see…my dad was once a member of the Lindblum army, but he was wounded and he's unable to work.  My mom had never worked before, so two years ago when dad was injured she thought it too late for her to start.  My older brother and I have been working to support our family, but his job doesn't pay too well.  My family relies on me to bring in a lot of the money."  When he had started talking he seemed proud, but as he continued, Mikoto noticed his voice gradually get softer.

She couldn't help it anymore, she looked up from the application to look at him.  He was still smiling and she wondered how.  "I try to be optimistic though," he continued, almost as if he could read her thoughts.

"Well…" she started slowly.  He looked into her eyes and again as much as the Genome tried, she could not look away.  Her heart began pounding.  She wanted to say, 'Sorry, but your employment history is atrocious,' but she couldn't bring herself to refuse him.

His brown eyes, so full of life, continued to stare into her helpless and empty blue ones.  "…We leave for the Forgotten Continent in a week."

"You mean I'm hired!!?"

"Ye-" but before she could finish her one word Ryuu had completely lunged forward to embrace her.  Mikoto's heart was pounding so fast now it seemed that it would self-destruct.

"Thank you so much, Ms. Tribal!  You will not regret this!" the he pulled away.  "You have no idea how much this means to me!"

Mikoto smiled half-heartedly and stood up.  All she could think of was _I'm digging my own grave.  There is no way I can win.  _"Here is a list of things you will want to bring," she said handing him a piece of paper.  "We're leaving at five a.m.  The vessel will wait for no one, so if you're late you _will _miss it."

Ryuu nodded importantly.  "Then I'll be early!"

She watched helplessly as he ran from her hotel room.  He was incredibly happy, and she felt good that she helped with the reason behind the big smile on his face.  

After she saw him bound down the hall she shut the door and leaned against it.

"Good going, Mikoto…" she sighed and padded into the kitchen.  "You're fighting a losing battle."  With a sigh she poured herself some coffee and sat down at the small circular table.  Yesterday's paper was spread across the surface, the headlines did not appear too interesting though, and so with a swipe of her hand she knocked it into the wastepaper basket.

"Well, if he has a history of being late he'll miss the ride," she told herself, holding her face close to the mug and allowing the steam from the hot beverage to warm her cheeks.

As she sat at the table, thinking and enjoying her coffee, someone began knocking at her door again.  This time it startled her so much that she spilled the hot liquid down the front of her black shirt.  Wincing, she held the hot fabric away from her skin.  "Yes?"

"Ms. Tribal?  Are you going to come out any time soon?  We need to clean your room."

_It's just the maid, _she sighed.  For a second there she thought it might be that boy again.  Though, deep down inside, she sort of hoped it had been.

Quickly, she dried her shirt to the best of her ability and opened the door, still rubbing a white hotel crested washcloth against her shirt.  "I'm sorry ma'am, I'll be out of your way in a minute," Mikoto said uneasily.

"Thanks sweetie," the maid smiled, stepping into the room.  Mikoto grabbed her cloak and threw the dirty towel into the laundry basket the maid pulled into the room behind her.

"Thank God I wore black today…" the Genome murmured to herself as she walked down the staircase, still examining the wet spot.

"See you again tonight, Ms. Tribal!" the inn-keeper shouted after her as she bustled out through the door.  

_What a weird feeling, _she pondered, _I'm not sure what it is.  I want to see him again, but I know that I shouldn't.  He's so dangerous, and he is utterly unaware how._

The sun was beating down on her fair skin.  It was going to be a miserably hot day, she could already tell.  There was no way she could wear the cloak all day without passing out, so instead she draped it over an arm while she walked to the stores distributing the applications.

The closest was the item store.  She walked in and approached the counter.  "Ms. Tribal!" the owner exclaimed.  "Are you here to pick up the applications?"

"Yes, I am."

The plump man handed her a small stack of papers.  "I had quite a response!  A lot of people were very interested."

"That's good to hear," she said.  "Thank you, sir.  I'll contact the applicants for interviews soon."  As she was readying to leave she heard the door fly open.

"Hey!  Mr. B!  Is that M. Tribal guy here yet!?"

"Hey boys.  Great timing!  She just got here!"

"She?" one of the boys asked confusedly.  He then looked at her, and gasped.  "Oh, so I guess M. Tribal isn't a guy…" he concluded finally.

"No shit, genius," his cohort rolled his eyes and elbowed him in the ribs.  The two seemed like clones of each other.  They were completely identical.  Both had dirty blond hair and green eyes, and each had a silver earring in his right ear.

"These two also turned in applications.  I have to say they were probably the most excited about the job," the shopkeeper laughed.  

"I'm Blaise," one smiled, offering his hand.

"And I'm Blade," the other finished, offering his as well.

"They're twins," Mr. B. announced.

"Thanks for stating the obvious," Blade chuckled.

Reluctantly, Mikoto shook the boys' hands.  "So…I suppose that you want an interview?" she asked.  _I don't have the same feeling when I am around others…_she thought, _what is it about that boy?_

The twins looked ecstatic.  "Yes!" they exclaimed, giving each other a high five.

"Well then, if you will follow me…" she said walking out the door.  Before she closed it she cocked her head to the side and said, "Thanks again, sir!" and waved.

She led the two boys to a nearby fountain and sat on the rim.  Blaise and Blade sat on a bench facing her.  "What is your employment history?  …"

Completely drained, Mikoto sauntered into her hotel room.  It was nearing midnight, and most of her day had consisted of interviewing applicants.  She opened her refrigerator and pulled out a small carton of yogurt.  As she ate, she looked at the applications and thought: _Days until the expedition; seven.  Treasure hunters hired: five.  _

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

By the way, the characters Blaise and Blade are characters from my short story that is posted on fictionpress (still under the name CuteMooglez).  It's a very short read (only seven pages); if you are interested check it out!  It's called 'Pardon the Parody'.  And be sure to review!

Also, if you enjoyed the poem, be sure to read Virginia's (a.k.a Vivi-chan) poetry!  Go and check it out!   The poem she wrote for this particular story is called 'Shattering Stone' and if you are interested in reviewing her, I'm sure she'd really appreciate it.

Review away!  ^o^  As always, flames and feedback are greatly appreciated!


	6. A Kind of Magic

**We are not promoting underage drinking, smoking or gambling in any way, shape or form!**

A/N: Keeping in mind that we _are _American, when we say football in this chapter we are referring to the American version of it (you know, where the foot is hardly ever used…).  Hopefully this will lessen some confusion as the chapter progresses.  

**Tereterhomdark2003:** Thanks for pointing out the typo, I'll go back and fix it.  ^o^ 

**Jkateel**: We noticed that Ryuu was starting to sound a lot like Zidane, but we're trying to really develop his character so that he is unique and they aren't _too_ similar.  

**Robshi:** Yes, I will update before the next millennium.  See?  It only took a few weeks this time.  Hehe.  Sorry for the wait, but writer's block had me there for a while.  And, by the way, Virginia had a reply for your message, it's in her review for chapter five of this story if you want to check out what she said.  ^o^

**IMPROVED Uber Rei Model 06**: I don't try to take forever with posting, I really don't.  I only try to take as much time as it should take to produce a quality chapter.  I don't want to post a crappy chapter, and I'm sure no one else wants me to do that either.

A/N II: It was actually amusing how many people are worried about whether or not Ryuu's going to make the vessel in time.  But, you'll just have to read this chapter to find out. This is more like an introductory chapter, allowing readers to get to know the treasure hunters a little bit.  We'll probably post some of the concept drawings that BreeAnne and I did on our website (and if anyone has drawn a picture of the treasure hunters, Mikoto, Ryuu or anything Final Fantasy related, they can email them to us at CuteMooglez@hotmail.com and we'll post them on our site as well!)

Chapter 6

            Mikoto picked up her mug of coffee and carried it to her bed where many pictures were spread across the sheets.  With a soft clank she set the mug on her bedside table and began to cut a piece of backing board into a square, just big enough to create a border around a picture of the old Lindblum chapel.  This scrapbook project was started many years ago, it was Zidane's idea.  He wanted photos of places through the centuries to see how much they changed.

The chapel was a great example that sometimes even the most beautiful things cannot be preserved.  While most of the chapel remained untouched, on one side there was green spray-painted graffiti that read 'Jack loves Amber'.  But apparently, Jack changed his mind, because he tried to cover up his love declaration with a thin coat of blue spray paint.

As she pasted the picture down she hoped that the city council would cover up the graffiti and restore the chapel.  Just as she set the scrapbook on the table to dry, her wristwatch beeped.  It was nearing seven.  Tonight, the night before the expedition, she was taking all the treasure hunters that she hired out to eat.  It would be the last _real _meal they would get for a while.

She stepped out of her room and locked the door behind her.  Four days she had spent in town and she could almost swear that Ryuu was following her.  Coincidence or not, he seemed to be everywhere she went.  When she went shopping for rations, he was conveniently there as well.  He also happened to be in the weapon store, the armor store, even the item shop when she was.  After so many encounters, she learned to run the opposite direction whenever she heard someone cry, "Ms. Tribal!  Ms. Tribal!"

Every time they ran into each other, he would thank her over and over again, offer to carry anything she was holding at the moment, and above all, make her an uncomfortable wreck.  For some reason, whenever she was alone around him she felt both happy and scared, her heart sped up and it was difficult to speak.

Shaking all this from her mind she opened the door and looked around the darkened streets.  There was no sign of the young man…yet.

She was supposed to meet the treasure hunters in Bobo's bar, so, making sure her dagger was still at her hip, she walked to the air cab station.

Before long she walked into the smoke filled bar.  A young man with silver hair sitting alone at a table waved at her, she nodded in his direction and joined him.

"How are you, Seth?" she asked, sitting across from him.

The man leaned back into his chair and took a drag from his cigarette.  "I'm fine."

Seth was a man of very few words.  Mikoto knew this from experience.  He had actually been a part of her treasure-hunting group a few years back.  The man exhaled the smoke through his nose and sat back up to flick the ashes into an ashtray.

"I'm here!" came a singsong voice.  Mikoto looked up to see a girl with multicolored highlights and blond hair plop down into an unoccupied seat.  Her hair was up in a ponytail and her long bangs covered up one of her eyes.  Blaise and Blade were the next to enter, and Ryuu was last, showing up fifteen minutes late.

The group of six sat around a circular table.  "Okay, time for introductions," Mikoto sighed.  "My name is Mikoto Tribal; I will be your boss for the next few months."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" one of the twins exclaimed, hitting his arms against the table.  "Interviewer, I could understand.  But where's our _real _leader?  Is he your dad or something?"

"I don't understand…" the Genome said slowly.

"Not only are you female, but you're the youngest out of all of us!" Blaise shouted.  "You don't look like you could hurt a fly!"

Mikoto chewed on the inside of her lip agitatedly and pulled the daggers from her sheaths.  She spun them easily around her fingers and stabbed them into the table, pinning the boy's sleeves to the wood.

Everyone stared at her wide-eyed, except for Seth who muttered, "You don't want to piss her off."

"I-I take it back!" the twin gasped.

"Good," Mikoto stated, yanking her weapons from the table.  "Someone else introduce themselves."

Ryuu beamed at everyone, "My name is Ryuu Lucchesi, I'm seventeen and I love motorcycles.  I have two.  One I bought and one that I built myself."

"Motorcycles?!  That's awesome!" Blade exclaimed.

"Okay," the girl started up.  "My name's Kashiya O'Malley and I'm twenty years old.  I will be serving as your medic; I've studied mainly in the fields of alchemy.  I am very interested in horoscopes, astrology and mythology.  I can guess anyone's star sign accurately if I know them well enough.  Also, I have mastered the use of over ten different weapons. However, I won't be fighting."

"Wow…" the twins said in unison.

"Impressive," Seth agreed, dragging on his cigarette.

"Okay, I'm Blaise Monomitsu…"

"And I'm Blade…"

"We're eighteen years old," they smiled, putting their arms around each other's shoulders and holding up peace signs.

"Our hobbies include drawing, fighting and pulling pranks."

"We are Pisces and also enjoy taking long walks on the beach," Blaise finished, winking in Kashiya's direction.

 "Well, aren't you two an interesting bunch?" Kashiya asked, rolling her eyes.  "Sorry, but I don't date younger men."

"Alright, you last…" Mikoto said, looking at Seth.

With a sigh he sat up straight and jammed the butt of his cigarette into the ashtray.  "I'm Seth Sevacas, twenty three years old, and I have a gun."

"That's…nice…" Ryuu said, smiling nervously.

"Actually, I have three…" he continued, "but only one is with me."

The table was awkwardly silent for a while until a waitress came over to them.  "What can I get for ya?" she asked around her chewing gum.

"Go ahead and order, it's on me," Mikoto said.

"Beer, please," Seth said, leaning back again.

"I'll have a salad," Kashiya smiled.  The waitress scribbled down the orders and looked back up at the posse.  

"Steak!" the twins said simultaneously.  "And beer!"

Ryuu scanned the menu, "Everything is so expensive."

"Don't worry about it," Mikoto said.

"Uh…I'll have a hamburger and fries," he said eventually.

"Anything for you miss?" the waitress asked.

"No, thanks."

"So, Mikoto," Seth began with an unlit cigarette hanging from his mouth.  "How old are you know?  You look the same."  He then cupped a hand around his mouth and lit the new cigarette.

"Fifteen," she answered, out of habit.

Seth furrowed his eyebrows, blowing out a new puff of smoke.  "You were thirteen last time, then?"

"Yeah…" she said slowly.

The young man shrugged and flicked the cigarette's loose ashes into the ashtray a second time.  "You look the same," he said simply.

"That's strange…" Kashiya said.  "She's in the age group where she should be changing rapidly."

"Yeah, you've had too many smokes, Seth.  She's had to have changed over two years," Blaise said, elbowing the older man in the side.

Now everyone was staring at her, almost asking her to clarify their statements with her own input.  In these situations, she found that sarcasm was the most useful tool.  "I met a troll under the Lindblum bridge and he trapped me inside this body," she said, her voice absolutely dripping with sarcasm.

Seth chuckled and everyone else laughed.

"I knew they existed!" Ryuu yelled, slamming his fist on the table.  All eyes were on him.  "Just kidding, sheez."

"Riiiiight," Blade said, furrowing his eyebrows.  "So dude, about your motorcycles!"

"Boys, aren't they entertaining?" Kashiya said quietly to Mikoto, using her hand to cover her mouth.

The Genome merely rolled her eyes.  It was going to be a long night, and it was just beginning.  While the twins and Ryuu talked excitedly about how ecstatic they were to be leaving the next day, Mikoto listened to Kashiya as she talked about a new legend she heard over the weekend.  Seth was staring in the direction of a radio where someone was broadcasting a football game between Treno and Dali.

"Hey, Seth, twenty gil says the Dali Dragons win," Blaise shouted, slapping some coins onto the table.  

"Those hicks?  You're on," Seth put another twenty gil in the middle of the table.

"Anyone else betting?"

"Yeah, my money's on the Dragons too," Blade laughed, putting more money in the middle.  

"How about you Ryuu?" Blaise asked.

"I'm not betting," the brunette smiled, "I don't like either of those teams."

"How about you, Kash?" 

"My name is Kashiya," she rolled her eyes.  The twins hadn't known her for more than thirty minutes and already they had a nickname for her.  "Who's playing?"

"The Dali Dragons and Treno Garudas," Ryuu answered.

"Treno, definitely!" she said, placing some of her own money down.

"You going to place a bet too, Mikoto?" 

The Genome shook her head.  "I don't know much about sports," she admitted, slowly.  

_"What?_"  Kashiya raised her eyebrows.  "What kind of sheltered life are you leading, dear?  Oh my, we'll have to teach you one of these days.  Football is the greatest sport ever!"

"TOUCHDOWN FOR THE GARUDAS!!" the announcer's statement roared over the static in the radio.  The entire bar erupted in cheering except for a few people who groaned and slouched forward.  

Ryuu laughed and looked at the twins, "I can't believe you two are placing a bet on the Dragons."

"Oh ye of little faith."

"Don't you worry what we do with our money," Blaise finished with a smirk.

"Thompson is barreling down the field only to be stopped by Davis.  Oooh, he's going to feel that one in the morning."

Seth smiled victoriously in the direction of the radio and took a drag on his cigarette.  "You might as well give me your money now, boys."

"What makes you say that!!?" Blade yelled.

"First ten minutes of the game, score: 14-0."

"What's your point?"

"The Dragons suck!" Kashiya yelled, sticking out her tongue.

Mikoto leaned back in her chair and smiled.  Treasure hunters had the most fun assortment of characters.  She was getting ready to break up the small brawl when the brightly clad waitress appeared with the food.

"Is there anything else I can get you?" she asked, setting the tray of food down. Everyone reached for their orders.

"I think we're good for now," Mikoto said.

"All right," the waitress smiled and picked the tray back up from the table.  "Call me if you need me."

The five treasure hunters scarfed down their food like it was their last meal, and Mikoto stared off into an unoccupied corner of the bar.

"You remind me of Kisata," Kashiya said slowly, looking at the Genome.

"Huh?" Mikoto started, snapping her attention away from the empty barstools.

"It's a tale from ancient Madin Sari lore.  Kisata was a beautiful young maiden, but she was always very timid and slightly paranoid.  Everyone always said that she was the most powerful of Summoners, but she feared her own power.  She feared battle and the thought of dying the most."

Mikoto looked at Kashiya awkwardly, how did she know her so well when they seemingly only just met.  "What about me reminds you of her?"

"Well…" the girl thought for a minute and took another bite from her salad.  "You seem very uncomfortable and you don't seem like you want to open up to anyone."

"What happened to this…Kisata?"

"Well, you see, she didn't like to fight or summon for that matter, but her parents had come from a very prestigious family and they made her study it anyway.  One day, on the night of the destruction of Madin Sari…"

Mikoto felt her cheeks redden.  She knew who was behind all that, even if they had done it on accident.

"It is fabled that balls of fire shot from the sky and burned the houses.  Many of the Summoners tried to flee over the water, but most stayed behind to protect their race.  Kisata tried to escape by boat with her friend, but she was forced to stay behind and fight because of her parent's delusional thoughts of honor and nobility.  Eidolons swarmed everywhere, trying to attack a 'giant eyeball' that was only visible between clouds, but nothing they did worked."

By this point, everyone at the table was listening.  "Then?" Ryuu pressed her on.  "What happened next?"

"Come on, you all know what happened to the Summoners," Kashiya rolled her eyes.  "She died, the city was destroyed, no one survived."

Mikoto felt her like someone had ripped her heart out and replaced it with a thirty-pound barbell.  She felt it sink into her gut. 

"Then what the hell was the point of even _telling _that story!?" Blade shouted.

"I never said that she was going to have the same fate!" the woman yelled back.  "I merely said that she reminded me of her!"

However, many thoughts were running through Mikoto's head.  Maybe she would have the same end; it wouldn't surprise her.  Deep down, she knew she would not be able to completely stop the destruction of Gaia; it was inevitable.  She was only postponing the tiny planet's demise.  But she hated thinking that way!  It was too…painfully true.

"Hey…" someone muttered in her ear.  She jumped when she felt a hand clamp around her shoulder.  "Are you all right?  You look pale."

Her blue eyes looked to her left and she automatically saw Ryuu's brown eyes staring into her soul, full of concern.

"Yeah, I didn't mean to scare you," Kashiya said, her lavender eyes begging for forgiveness.

"No, I'm fine…" Mikoto stuttered, putting a hand to her forehead.  She just wished that Ryuu wouldn't look at her like that; she couldn't think clearly.

"TOUCHDOWN DRAGONS!" the announcer shouted, interrupting everyone's train of thought.

"Hah!  Told you!  We're catching up!" the twins exclaimed, giving each other a high five.

"Catching up!?" Seth laughed, flicking his cigarette and reaching for his mug of beer.  "It's their first touchdown."

"So?"

"And that leaves us with the score 38-7.  We'll continue our coverage after a quick word from our sponsors," the announcer said, then a commercial came on about a sale somewhere.

"38-7?  That's just pathetic," Kashiya giggled.  "You two should reconsider your bet."

"No way!"

Seth shrugged and added more of his money to the bet.  "Whatever, it's your money."

Everyone else added more to the bet.  Now, Mikoto estimated that there was about two hundred gil in the center of the table.  Not _that _much money, but it was a decent amount.  

"What're you gonna buy with your half of the money, Ms. O'Malley?" Seth asked, with a small smirk.

Blaise stood up and pointed a finger at the older man.  "Don't get cocky!!  You haven't won yet!" he shouted.

Even after Mikoto paid the bill, after Seth and the twins had consumed two mugs of beer each, and the bet had increased to one hundred gil per person, they still sat around the table.  Seth kept upping the bet with his own money, saying there was no way in hell that the Dragons would win, even after everyone else stopped raising their bet.

Mikoto glanced at the clock on the wall; it was almost nine thirty.  "Tomorrow is an early day, we should be heading home…" she said, standing up.

"Shh!  Shh!" Blade shushed her.

"…intercepted by Simmons, he's tearing through the field with the Garudas following behind.  Oh my!  I can't believe this!  It's history in the making, folks!" the announcer yelled over the roaring of the crowd.  "The score is tied, 45-45!"

Seth sprayed his beer from his mouth, sending the liquid in all directions.  "How the hell did that happen?!"

"Keep it together, defense!" Kashiya shouted, though she knew it was pointless.  It wasn't as if they could hear her.

"Overtime!!?" a man shouted a few tables away.  "Against the stinking Dragons?!" 

Mikoto shook her head and grabbed her purse and cloak.  "I'm leaving," she announced, "and if you intend on making the vessel tomorrow I suggest you all do the same."

"Yes ma'am," Kashiya smiled.  "I'll be leaving after I hear the outcome of the game."

"Us too," the twins said together.

Though Seth did not answer she knew it was likely he would do the same.

"Ms. Tribal!  You're leaving!?" Ryuu asked, jumping from his chair and following her to the door.

"Yes.  I'll see you tomorrow," she said as she slipped into her cloak, careful not to make eye contact.

"I'll walk you home."

Mikoto stopped in her tracks and her eyes widened.  "No.  I'll be fine."

"But there's all sorts of weirdoes out at this time of night.  Especially in this part of town."

_You're one to talk about 'weirdoes',_ she thought.  "I'll manage.  I've lived in Treno before."

"I insist.  I wouldn't feel right allowing you to walk home alone in this district after dark."

"But…" she thought desperately for an excuse to walk alone, but her mind was clouded.  Still keeping her eyes averted to the ground, she consented, "…fine…"

Ryuu's eyes lit up in happiness and just as the two walked out the door they heard a simultaneous groan resonate through the bar.  "Hah!  Pay up!" Blade shouted to the angry Seth.

Ryuu laughed as the two walked out of the bar, "I guess the Dragons won after all," he finally concluded, beaming.  "Man, it feels good to get out of there!  There was way too much smoke.  Fresh air never tasted so good!"  He threw his arms up and stretched, then folded them behind his head.  "So, why did you choose the bar above all other places in Lindblum?"

"It was my brother's favorite restaurant," she said quietly.

"Was?" he stopped walking and turned to look at her.  She ignored this gesture and continued past him.  "Is there a reason you used the past tense in your last sentence?" Ryuu pressed on, running to catch up with the Genome.

"He's dead."

"Oh…" he bit his lower lip and shoved his hands into the pockets of his faded jeans.  "I'm sorry to hear that.  That has to be tough on your family."

Mikoto sighed and said nothing.  Ryuu glanced over at her, expecting her to say something but she never did.  "So, you live in Treno?"

"Sometimes."

The brunette raised his eyebrows.  "How does that work?"

"I have lived almost everywhere at least once."

"So…does your dad's job require him to move a lot?"

Mikoto remained silent.

"…Did I say something stupid again?" he grimaced.  "Please, if I am, by all means tell me to shut up, it won't insult me."

"You're fine."

"Are you sure?  Because if you think I talk too much, all you have to do is tell me…"

Without even realizing it, Mikoto smiled. 

"Ahh!" Ryuu grinned as well and pointed at her.  "So she smiles?  How cute!" 

The Genome automatically let the smile fade from her lips.

"What a shame," the boy sighed, "You've got a beautiful smile.  Why don't you show it off more often?"

Now the blond went back to her previous tactic of not talking and staring at the cobblestone road.

"So…" Ryuu started off again, desperate to make conversation so that the awkward silence would be put to an end, "…how big is your family?  I know that mine is relatively small."

Mikoto decided that she might as well say something, and disguise it to make it sound somewhat normal, even though she knew nothing about her past was 'normal'.  "I never knew my mom, and for a long time I lived with my father and two brothers.  My oldest brother died a long time ago and my second oldest brother took me away from home to live somewhere else.  After a few years, I moved in with him."

"Oh, so you're living with your brother?"

"No," she said slowly, "he died recently."

Ryuu stopped again, this time causing Mikoto to run directly into his back.  "So, you live all alone?!"

She rubbed the pain from her forehead and nodded.  

"You don't have any grandparents or aunts or uncles or even in-laws you can live with?!"

Mikoto could have said that they all died too, but she knew that it would make her story seem extremely morbid and strange; even if it was the truth.  

"So, you hunt treasure for a living?"

"No," she said.  "My family owns the Auction House in Treno, I get a substantial amount of money from that."

"So, then why are you going treasure hunting?"

"I need more items to put into the Auction House, so it's not necessarily 'treasure' we're looking for, it's more like…priceless artifacts."

"Oh."  Ryuu thought for a moment and had a burning desire to ask her whatever happened to her father, but decided against it.  Maybe another day she would tell him everything on her own free will.  He didn't want to push a subject as touchy as this.

The two finally reached the air cab station and boarded the small vessel.  "Man…I have a lot to do tonight before I go to bed.  Oh, by the way, where do you suggest I buy a good weapon?"

"You don't already have one?"

"No…I have some money though.  I'll buy one tonight."

"Dragoos is a good weapon shop."

"Aren't they really expensive?"

"How much money do you have to spend?"

Ryuu thought for a moment, "Around five hundred gil."

At this, Mikoto almost fell backwards.  Five hundred gil couldn't buy him a decent weapon.  With a sigh she leaned against the cool glass, "I guess we'll be stopping in Treno before we make it to the Forgotten Continent."

"Why?"

"You'll need a weapon, won't you?"

"Well…yeah…but…"

"My brother…collected weapons.  I'll let you use one.  What kind of weapon would you prefer?"

"I don't know."

Mikoto thought, tapping her lip.  The air cab stopped and the two got off.  "Your body structure is similar Zidane's.  Would you be able to handle a double sword?"

"Whass'at?"

"Two swords connected with one hilt."

"Most likely…"

"I'll let you use one…" she said uneasily, as they neared the inn, "As long as you take care of it."

"Of course!" he declared.  "I don't know how I could ever repay you."  The two stopped in front of the inn.  _If he misses the vessel tomorrow he won't have to worry about repaying me.  _

"Goodnight, m'lady," he smiled, bowing.  She watched him and locked eyes with him only when he stood up.  She felt her heart leap into her throat and she barely managed to goodnight before stumbling into the hotel.  

"Well, he's a good lookin' boy," an elderly woman chuckled as Mikoto walked past.

"Is he the same one that was following you, Ms. Tribal?" the innkeeper asked.  "Is he your _boyfriend_?"

The blond turned and glared at the man, his only response was to laugh.  As she walked up the stairs she yelled, "By the way, Mr. Mitchell, I'll need a wake-up call for four o'clock tomorrow morning."

"Why so early?"

"I'm leaving, I need to be at the airship dock by five to take off."

"All right.  Then yes, ma'am, you'll be getting a wake-up call at four," he smiled.

Mikoto did not return this gesture and instead went to her room.

**.          .          .**

Blaise, Blade, Kashiya, and Seth stood in a line in front of Mikoto as she paced back and forth before them.  The twins' mom had come to see them off.

"Remember, boys, to wash up every day.  Change your underwear!  I packed enough to last you for a week, but you'll have to wash them!  I won't be there to do the laundry for you!!"

"Yes, mom…" Blaise said monotonously, stifling a yawn.

"It's too early for us to retain any information," Blade complained.

The woman glanced at her watch.  "I have to be at work soon.  Give me a hug…" she lunged forward and embraced the two blonds.  "Be careful out there, okay?  You aren't invincible, so don't do anything stupid."

"Yes, ma…" they said simultaneously.

The jolly woman waved goodbye and ran out of the airship dock.  Mikoto glanced at her watch as well.  Ten minutes before take-off and Ryuu hadn't shown up.  A part of her rejoiced in the hope that he wouldn't, yet another part prayed that he would come bursting through the doors at any minute.

"So…" Blaise finally said, looking at Mikoto, "you're our leader?  You still don't seem very strong."

"Knock it off, you two," Kashiya sighed, pressing a hand to her forehead.

"What're you gonna do?  That swirly dagger thing again?  That isn't so tough!  You just caught me off guard."

Mikoto clenched her teeth and balled her hands into fists.  She was really starting to get sick of those two and she had only met them for the first time a week ago.

"C'mon!  Show me what you can do!" Blaise continued to antagonize.

Suddenly Blade was aware that Mikoto's hand was glowing red.  "Blaise?  Um, Blaise…you might want to stop…" he warned.

"I could beat y-"

The next think Blaise knew, Blade had tackled him to the floor and he watched as a fire spell barely sailed over their heads.  It hit a nearby barrel and it the wood burst into flames.

"What the f-!"

"Shut up, Blaise!" Kashiya screamed.  "You just don't know when to shut your damn mouth!"

Seth got up from sitting on his suitcase and approached Mikoto who was desperately trying to get her emotions under control.

"What was that?" he asked, cigarette hanging from his mouth.  She didn't answer, she knew it was best not to.

"It was magic," Kashiya muttered, "but I don't get it.  Magic is a lost art!  No one can use it anymore!"

Panting, she did not answer, only look at the smoldering barrel.  When she managed to calm down, she looked up at everyone.  "Let's board the ship."

"But, what about-," Blade started.

"He's late, and I'm not making any exceptions," she said, even though deep down she didn't want to leave him either.

Without arguing, all the treasure hunters picked up their luggage and began to board the Red Rose.  Just as she was pulling in the boarding ladder, with Seth's help, she heard a cry of, "Ms. Tribaaaal!!  Wait for me!  Ms. Tribaaaal!"

Unconsciously she smiled and felt as if a weight was being lifted from her chest, for running full speed toward them was Ryuu, carrying many suitcases under his arm. 

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Well, there you go!  ^o^  Like stated above, any art you have that you want posted on our site, email them to us and we will be more than happy to upload them!  Please leave us a review!  

(To see Blaise and Blade in action in our short story: 'Pardon the Parody', go to 


	7. Leaving Home Ain't Easy

**A/N:  **It seems like I did a nice job in making everyone apprehensive about whether or not Ryuu was going to make the flight.  Haha, I love torturing you people in the same way that you all love to threaten me.  ^o^   Anyways, sorry for the delay, but here's the next chapter!

**Robshi**: I don't think the technologies I included in the last chapter were _that _advanced, I mean the radio may be a fairly new invention, but it _has _been around for a while.  Not only that, but this story does take place around 200 years after the game ends.  O.o  

**Tereterhomdark2003: **Thanks for the compliments on our character development.  Believe it or not we did spend a long time planning out each character's personality, and went so far as figured out what their pasts were like.  We don't know if we'll incorporate their pasts into this story or not (it really depends on whether or not the readers want to know), but if not we'll post them on fictionpress.  ^o^

**Shadow66: **He reminds you of Cid?  That's great!  Cid and Vincent were both of our favorite guys in FFVII (the greatest girl of course was Yuffie).  But when we came up with Seth's character, he was literally a mix between FF8's Squall with K-san's sense of humor (from Gravitation).  

Keep Yourself Alive: Chapter 7

Mikoto smiled down as she leaned ever further over the railing.  She, as well as a few of the other treasure hunters, had gathered on the deck.  Seth was leaning against a wall, arms folded, puffing on a cigarette.  Kashiya was standing beside Mikoto, looking over the railing as well.  Their hair blew in the wind as the airship soared over the ocean.

Already, they had been on the airship for six hours, and they weren't going to land on the Forgotten Continent until morning.  The Red Rose was a very old airship, and very slow, but it was sturdy and still in good shape.  Even better, it had an autopilot system that was still functional.  After the disappearance of the mist, while the Alexandrian royal family still had control of it, they had the mist engine removed and replaced with a steam engine.  So, in the end, while the Red Rose didn't look like much more than an antique, it was still a well-built ship.

"I still don't understand how you can use magic…" Kashiya pondered.

Mikoto remained silent.  It was true that since a lot of technology had been developed, people didn't use magic anymore.  They stopped teaching it because they thought it wasn't needed.  So it wasn't as if Kashiya herself couldn't use a few spells, it was just a matter of whether Mikoto taught her some.  The only problem the fear of magic most humans had.  She was hoping that they would all just drop the subject and forget it ever happened.

"Wow!" someone exclaimed.  Footsteps came running onto the deck and Mikoto watched as Ryuu thrust himself over the railing to get a glimpse at the scenery.  "Where are we now?"

"Still crossing the ocean," Seth sighed, exhaling a small cloud of smoke.  "Just like the last time you asked."

Ryuu blushed and stood next to the railing for a while, letting the salty sea breeze linger on his lips.  "Oh, thanks again for letting me borrow your brother's double sword," he beamed at Mikoto.  "Now I just need to learn how to use it."

"A double sword, huh?" Kashiya asked.  "Where do you get these weapons?  Daggers, double swords…they're all so…" she searched for a good word to use, but when nothing came to her she just changed approaches.  "No one uses those kinds of weapons anymore."

"Blaise and Blade are using swords," Mikoto pointed out.

"Yeah, but that's different.  Swords are still used in the military.  But daggers aren't, that's pretty close combat.  It takes a special type of person to be able to wield daggers effectively and not put their life in danger."

Mikoto shrugged and said nothing.  Finally, she spoke again, but kept her eyes focusing on the water.  "Hey, Ryuu, what are the twins doing?"

"They were in there sparring," he said, jamming his thumb in the direction of the door.

"With swords?" Kashiya exclaimed.

"Yeah.  It's pretty interesting to watch," the brunette laughed.

Seth threw his cigarette off of the side of the ship and walked for the door.  "It's not safe to spar on an airship, especially one this old.  I'll break them apart."

As the older man walked past him Ryuu laughed nervously and muttered, "Glad I'm not one of them…"

The Genome sighed and slumped against the railing.  She knew she should probably go into the main room of the airship to avoid getting seasick.

Just as she pushed herself up to follow Seth inside, Ryuu stopped her.  "Do you know the proper way to wield a double sword?  I'm afraid I'll cut myself in half with the way I've been holding it."

Mikoto chewed on her lip for a second before saying, "Okay, go get it."  She had never actually tried to use a double sword before, but she _had _watched Zidane use it.

Ryuu ran for his sword.  Mikoto had let him borrow Zidane's Ultima Weapon, since it was the lightest and most maneuverable of his collection, and it was made with a metal that was only found on Terra.

He returned carrying the weapon in a very awkward manner, and handed it to her.  As soon as she touched the hilt of she felt a rush of knowledge enter her brain, be it because it was a Terran-made weapon, or because Garland programmed her to comprehend things instantly after Zidane died.  Smiling lightly, she swung the weapon around a few times, then handed it back to him.

"Okay, it goes like this…" she started slowly, but already she could feel his eyes boring holes into her; making her feel uncomfortable.

"You made it seem so simple," he breathed.

She sighed and disregarded his comment.  "Grip the handle like this," she fixed his grip around the hilt.  "That in itself should help you out, you were holding it incorrectly."

"Wow, that feels strange," Ryuu said, examining his new grip.

"Now, when you bring it down on your enemy, hold it over your head, using both hands," she instructed, using her own hands to show him.  "And bring it down on the fiend."

The brown haired teenager practiced the attack several times before he got used to it.  He sat down to rest and Kashiya approached him.  "Can I hold your sword?"

Ryuu nodded.

The medic carefully picked it up and swung it around.  "What an interesting weapon," she thought out loud.  "It's so light.  What is it made of?  Mythril?"

Kashiya was a very smart woman, but Mikoto almost thought she knew _too_ much.  "It's a metal that no longer exists.  That weapon was built a long time ago," Mikoto lied.

"Hmm…" Kashiya continued to fumble around with the double sword.  "The workman-ship is spectacular, do you know who the synthesist was?"

Mikoto shook her head, though she could have easily said Garland.  But, even if she had, Kashiya wouldn't have known who he was.

"I'm going inside," the Genome finally said, opening the main door and leaving Kashiya and Ryuu.  

She walked past the twins in the main room and went into the one of the bedrooms.  The ship had three.  In each room there was two beds.  Tonight, she would have to share a room with Kashiya.  This didn't bother her, but she didn't want anyone to know about her tail.

She walked into the room, shut the door behind her, and locked it.  Her tail wasn't used to being wrapped around her leg everyday all day, so she changed into a skirt and allowed her tail free movement.  As long as she was alone in there and no one saw, she could give her tail a break.

She sighed and sprawled out onto the bed she claimed as her own, laying on her stomach.  There was a window by the bed, so she stared outside at all of the birds flying alongside the airship.  She was tired, she had woken up early that morning to meet the treasure hunters at the airship dock, but she knew better than to fall asleep with the door locked.  Kashiya would be wanting to go to bed at some point.

So, quietly, Mikoto crept to the door and unlocked it, then she ran back to her bed and jumped under the sheets.  She yawned wide and fell asleep.

*          *          *

It was pitch black outside when Mikoto shot from her bed and covered her mouth to muffle the scream already threatening to escape.  She looked desperately around and clutched her heart.  From in the other bed, Kashiya groaned and shifted her weight to a different position.  

Was it a bad dream?  Whatever it was about, she couldn't remember.  But she knew Garland was in it, sneering down at her in a pompous way.  The old man had been dead for two hundred years now, why couldn't he leave her alone?

Still, the Genome's heart was beating unbelievably fast.  Her breathing now labored, she leaned against the headboard of the bed and tried to calm down.  Her cheeks were wet from tears, but she didn't understand why.  She worked so hard during the days to keep her emotions under control, even though it was ten times harder with Ryuu around, but what was the use of it when she couldn't control her emotions when she slept?  What if one night she had a dream that sparked an emotion powerful enough to trigger Kamikaze?  She shuddered at that thought. 

All of the promises she made would be for nothing.  All of her struggling would have been pointless.

As much as she tried to fall back to sleep, every time she closed her eyes she saw Garland's face, laughing at her and her pathetic struggle.

Heart still pounding, her hands clammy and her nightshirt soaked with sweat, she glanced back over at Kashiya.  She was still sleeping very soundly.  The clock on the wall said that it was almost three in the morning, and since Mikoto knew she had no chance of going back to sleep, she pulled herself from the bed.

Quietly, so as not to awaken the sleeping woman, the Genome tiptoed across the room and very quickly changed into some clothes to once again hide her tail.  Besides they were due to arrive at the Forgotten continent in a few hours; she would just get a head start.

Still trying to remain silent, she lit a candle and crept past Kashiya's bed.  The door creaked when she opened it.  She glanced back at the older woman, but she was still asleep.  Letting out a sigh of relief, she closed the door behind her and walked in the direction of the deck.  The ocean was always the prettiest late at night when you could see the moon and stars reflecting off of the waves.

To her astonishment, when she arrived someone was already standing at the railing.  He turned to look at her and she could see a smile spread across his face.

"You're up early, Ms. Tribal."

_It figures that he would be the one who is awake,_ she inwardly sighed.  Of course, fate hadn't been kind to her for her entire life, why start now?  The candle in her hand flickered then went out due to a small gust of wind.  She sighed and placed it down on the deck.

"Couldn't sleep?" he asked, motioning for her to stand beside him.  

Wearily, she moved next to him and once again leaned over the railing.  It was cold outside, mainly because of the altitude.  But they weren't so high that they couldn't still see the ocean.

Dabs of white and silver were splatter painted across the black waves.  The moons were especially bright that night.

"You know what I heard?" Ryuu finally spoke up, "I'll have to ask Kashiya about this one day, since she seems to know so many legends, but I heard that one of the moons had life on it at one point.  But you see that crater there in the center?" He pointed up at the blue moon, which was in fact, Terra. "That was caused by a cataclysmic explosion, wiping out all existence on the planet."

Mikoto smiled emptily up at her home.  "Yes, you should ask her about it," she said quietly.  While she could have easily told him the story, she was much more interested in hearing how much the legend had evolved over the generations.  

"All right, I'll do that," he beamed up at the sky.  

She shivered as the cool sea breeze swept over her bare skin.  She had on pants and a tee shirt, but they weren't doing anything to keep her warm.  She was not wearing shoes or socks, so she figured she should probably go inside before long.  That was, until Ryuu draped his jacket over her shoulders.

"A skinny thing like you shouldn't be out here dressed like that," he laughed.

She smiled and pulled the jacket tight around her shoulders, it was still warm from him wearing it and it smelled just like him.  

"So, did you have a bad dream?" he asked.

"Well…" she started awkwardly; she felt her cheeks burn red.  

"Don't feel bad, I did too.  I think it's the full moons," he glanced up at the sky again and the moonlight bathed his entire face a silver color.  "What was yours about?"

"I can't really remember…" she said slowly.  "I know it sounds silly, but I can only remember parts of it."

"It's not silly," he shrugged, "It happens to me all the time.  Then I'll see something that reminds me of my dream, and I can remember it again."

"I don't think I want to remember this dream," she shuddered.

"That bad, huh?"

She nodded and didn't say anything else; she just stood there, shivering slightly within Ryuu's jacket.

"Well," he sighed, pushing his wild brown hair back with one of his hands, "My dreams are always strange, even the scary ones," he chuckled, as if remembering one particular dream, but if this was the case, then he didn't voice his memory. 

"What was your dream about, Ryuu?" she asked, softly.  Her voice was tired and soft, he almost had to strain himself to hear it.

"Mine?  Well, I have to admit, that I can't really remember much of it either.  But I was being chased by something, something that I couldn't get away from.  And I could hear it gaining on me…" he paused for a moment.  "Crazy, isn't it?"

Mikoto didn't answer.  She constantly felt that way, as if Garland was always behind her, and as much as she tried to dodge the obstacles he put in her way, there was no way to do it.  

"I didn't scare you, did I?"

"No, no.  It's not that…"

"Then why'd you get quiet all of a sudden?"

"I was…thinking…"

The Genome shivered again, "Maybe we should go back inside.  It's really cold out here."

"Okay, sure…" Ryuu said reluctantly, then glancing back at the sky again, he followed her to the door.  When they got there, she stopped right in front of it without doing so much as touching the doorknob.

It hit her like a wall.  Just standing there in front of the door did it for her.  The entire dream came back to her in one mind-blowing instant.  She felt dizzy and fear overtook her again.  She could no longer keep her balance and she fell backwards onto the boy.

"Ms. Tribal!" he exclaimed, lunging forward to catch her just as she was falling.  "What is it?"

"L-Let's g-go ins-side," she managed to stammer out, her eyes wide in terror.  Still holding onto her, Ryuu helped her inside the main room of the airship and she sat down on a small crimson couch.

"Is there something wrong?  Can I get you anything?" he asked desperately.

"No, I'll be fine."

"What happened?  Are you okay?"

"I…remembered…" she said slowly.

"Remembered what?"

"My dream…"

"Oh," he gave a sigh of relief.  "You gave me a scare there.  I thought maybe you were anemic and you were going to pass out on me."

The Genome shook her head, then stood up and tried to light a candle, but her hand wouldn't stop shaking long enough for her to light the match.  Ryuu jumped up and held her hand in his to stop the trembling.  He led her over to a couch and set her down, then he lit the candle for her.

"What was it about?" he asked worriedly.

Still shaking violently, she shook her head a second time.  There was nothing she would have liked better than to tell him.  To just let all everything spew out, one by one.  But she couldn't.  She was afraid of a lot of things, but most of all, she was afraid that if he knew anything about her, he would think of her as some sort of monster.  A hideous beast.  He would probably avoid her, just like what happened to Zidane.

"I can't tell you…"

"Why not?  It's better to get these things off your chest, ya know?"

"I…don't want to think about it anymore."

"Okay, okay.  I understand.  But are you sure you'll be all right?"

She nodded and pulled her legs up onto the couch with her, still tugging the jacket around her.  In her mind she was sorting through the dream, trying to make sense of it all.  But there was no way she could.  

She was running through catacombs.  The smell of rotting wood and moisture stuck in her nose, and along the walls several torches were lit.  Someone was calling out for her, but she knew that it couldn't have been Kuja or Zidane.  The voice was familiar; there was no doubt in her mind that it was Garland. 

_ The catacombs came to a place where they split up into several separate caves.  She tried to get as far away from his haunting words as possible, she ran down the middle cave, and before long she came face-to-face with a door.  Panting for breath, she stared at it when suddenly from the center something started to protrude.  She stared in horror as Garland's face stared at her through the door._

_Eyes wide, she turned and fled.  "You can't escape…" his hoarse, growling voice followed her._

_She turned down another cave, and ran as far as she could until she came to another dead end.  There was another door, Garland's face protruded from it as well.  "I built you, I have ultimate control over you actions."_

_"No…" she panted, running from there as well.  All of the caves seemed to lead to doors, and all of the doors led to Garland.  Each time he reminded her that she was fighting a losing battle.  _

_"Just give in, and open up the door…"_

_"No!" she screamed and ran even further away.  _

_Still, no matter where she turned, he was there, sneering down at her in a haughty manner.  _

_Desperately, she ran through all of the caves, only to find that there was no escape.  Everywhere she turned to, he had beaten her there, or maybe he was everywhere at once.  Out of breath, she made her way down one last corridor, the torches that lit the path were further apart and didn't offer as much light. When she came to the dead end, it was almost completely dark.  _

_With nowhere else to go, she collapsed in front of the door and cried.  Was there no way to beat him?  Then, she looked up, and noticed this door was different from the others.  This one was a plain door; Garland's face was not jeering at her from it.  In a last ditch effort to get away from his reprimanding words, she threw the door open and ran through it, not looking at where it led.  When she did see what lay ahead, it was too late.  She was already standing at the foot of a cliff, trying to keep her balance.  The earth beneath her already began to give away._

_Frantically, she started waving her arms, trying with all her might to push herself back onto the land, but despite her efforts, she had still fallen.  She couldn't do anything about it, and all she could do was watch the bottom grow closer to her.  An ocean?  A lake?  She couldn't tell, but whatever it was, she was getting ready to fall directly into it._

The wait wasn't long until she finally smacked against the water.  Somehow it felt no different than what it would feel like to fall against concrete.  The cold liquid stung her lungs and paralyzed her insides, and she didn't think she could breathe.  Then, as if things weren't bad enough, she realized all too late that she couldn't swim.  She struggled to keep her head above water, but all of her struggling only kept pushing her further down.

Then…she had woken up.  Sweating, crying, and scared out of her mind.  What did her dreams mean?  

If she had been brave enough, she would have asked Kashiya.  Surely she would offer some sort of idea of what the dream could have meant, but that meant revealing secrets.  And by revealing these secrets, it would change her life forever, for better or for worse.

"Ms. Tribal?" someone was calling her.  Still, she was lost in her thoughts, but the mantra of 'Ms. Tribal' replayed itself in her brain over and over.  "Mikoto?"

She snapped from her daze and stared directly into Ryuu's eyes.  

"Are you all right?  Are you sure I can't get you anything?"

"I'll be fine…" It was like playing chicken with him.  She couldn't stop from looking into his eyes, and he wouldn't pry his away from her.  His dark eyes were filled with concern, and it was the first time in so long she had seen someone that was truly worried about her.  The last person to care that much about her well-being had been…Zidane.  

"Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?"

"No, I'll be fine."

Still, he didn't take his gaze away from her.  Her head was spinning again.  Not only could she not look away from him, but so many other things were on her mind.  It wasn't until she heard a male voice cry, "Get a room, you two," that the awkward moment between them passed.

"Get a life, Blaise," Ryuu retorted, turning to look at the boy who had made his way out of his room.  Mikoto on the other hand turned a bright red and pretended to be very interested in a stain on the couch. 

"What the hell are you doing up so early anyway?" the twin asked them, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"Nightmares."

"Awww, how cute.  You had bad dreams?" the blond laughed and started walking off.

"What are you doing up so early?" Ryuu called after him.

"I'm going to use the men's room," Blaise beamed, giving them a thumbs-up.  

"Okay, maybe you didn't have to tell us," Mikoto mumbled.  Still giving them a sly smile, Blaise wandered into the ship's bathroom.  "Even when they're tired they're obnoxious," she sighed again, leaning her head against the arm of the sofa.  

"Yeah, but it wouldn't be as interesting without them," Ryuu laughed.

"Perhaps not…" she sighed.

For a few moments it was silent and the only sound that could be heard was the sound of boards creaking in the old airship.  The bathroom door opened and Blaise stepped out, still smirking at them jokingly, and then he disappeared into his bedroom.

"So, do you plan on going back to sleep?" Ryuu finally asked, trying to stifle a yawn.

"I don't think so."

"Oh, then I'll stay up with you.  I'm not tired."

She could tell that this was a lie.  "You can go on to bed, I'll be fine."

"Nope, I already told you, I'm not tired."

"Okay…" she said slowly.

"So, Mikoto, tell me more about yourself," he smiled and leaned back against the couch.  

"There's not much to tell…" she lied.  "It would be boring anyway."

"Naw, I'm sure it wouldn't.  Come on, I'm interested!"

"No, maybe another time," Mikoto stated, lifting her head from the arm of the couch.  

Ryuu smiled and laughed, "Okay, but I'll hold you to that, you know?"

"Yeah, yeah…"

It was silent again, and from beside her, Mikoto noticed Ryuu begin to nod off occasionally.  But as soon as he closed his eyes and let his head droop, they snapped back open and he shook his head, almost as if he were trying to shake his tiredness out.  

"Just go to bed," she sighed, "You're tired."

"No, I'm not tired," he argued, "I'm tough, I can stay awake.  I'm not tired…" and he continued to repeat this over and over, more to himself than to her. "I can last a night or two without sleeping."

"Or two?"  

Ryuu blushed a bit and tried to change subjects, but she stopped him.  "You didn't get any sleep last night either?"

"I was too nervous to go to sleep; you know how it is, right?  It was going to be my first time off of the Mist Continent, I was going to go treasure hunting…"

"You need to get some sleep."

"No, I'll be fine."

Mikoto still had her doubts.  The boy looked as if he was about to fall asleep at any given second.  Still, he was adamant on not going to bed, thus she didn't argue with him anymore.

Ryuu talked sleepily for about ten minutes, then it got silent again between them.  Mikoto looked to her side to see the boy struggling to keep his eyes open.  Then, without any warning, he slumped over and fell over her lap, dozing peacefully.  The action startled her, but she almost laughed when she saw what happened.  

"He claimed to not be tired," she smiled, looking upon his sleeping face.  When she realized that she was staring, she blushed and looked over at a dark corner of the ship.  Still, as if a magnet was pulling her, she always found herself stealing glances at the boy.  The more she looked at him, the more strange thoughts ran through her head. _I'll bet his hair is really soft…_she thought, then she scolded herself, _Get a grip, Mikoto!  Pull yourself together!  _

Yet, she couldn't help herself, and before long she found herself stroking his long dark hair.  She felt strangely at peace, and despite her efforts to stay awake, she found that she was losing the battle herself.  Her eyes, no, her entire face felt heavy.  

It was hard for her to even keep her eyes focused, so instead of fighting anymore, she allowed herself to fall back to sleep, with Ryuu's head in her lap, and her own head tilted to the side.  

*          *          *

When Seth awoke the next morning, the first thing he realized while he was dressing himself, was that he needed a cigarette, and the second thing he realized, was that Ryuu wasn't in his bed.  Rubbing the side of his forehead with the palm of his hand, the man walked into the main room of the ship and saw on the couch the two teenagers sleeping.  

He stared at them for a few seconds, then walked back into his room and returned with an instant camera.  Quietly, so as not to disturb them, he turned the flash off and took a picture of the sleeping figures.  The camera automatically spit out the photo, and lighting a cigarette, the man walked out onto the deck to wait for the picture to develop.  

The next to awake was Kashiya.  She walked out of her and Mikoto's room, wondering where on Gaia the teen could be.  When she saw the two she had to cover her mouth so as not to awake them with a squeal.  "Oh God, I wish I had a camera!" she whispered, "I wish I could draw!  I wish I could do something!  That is the cutest thing ever!"

She tiptoed past them, watching them all the while, and joined Seth on the deck.  "Did you see them in there?" she asked, once she had shut the door behind them.  "Isn't that the most precious?"

Seth smirked, and showed her the picture.  "I thought so too."

"When we get back to Lindblum you'll _have _to copy this for me!"

"Whatever," he shrugged, taking the picture back.

"Are you prepared for today?  It's our first real day of adventure!" 

Seth lifted up part of his shirt to show off a gun that was placed at his hip.  That was basically all he had on him.  Kashiya on the other hand seemed to be laden down with all sorts of things.  On each of her arms she wore bands with pockets on them for holding herbs.  On her hip and thigh she had a pouches for potions and other medicines.  Lastly, she carried a backpack on her back filled with first aid bandages and antiseptics.  

"I just hope I haven't forgotten anything…" she said slowly, fumbling with the charm on her necklace.  As many had noticed, Kashiya always wore a black choker around her throat, and in the middle a diamond shaped charm hung down with some weird symbol carved into it.  

"What does that symbol stand for?" Seth asked, throwing the cigarette butt over the side of the airship. They were no longer flying over ocean, but land.  

"Oh, it's the symbol for 'Leo'.  That's my horoscope," she beamed.

Seth nodded and looked forward.

"You're a Scorpio, aren't you?"

"How'd yo-"

Kashiya giggled and leaned over the railing.  "You don't talk too often, and you seem very aloof and mysterious.  Not only that, but your eyes really give it away.  You may not talk very often, but all of your feelings show through your eyes.  That was a dead giveaway."

"Wow, that's a dead ringer!" someone said from the doorway.  With a sigh, Kashiya turned to see the twins come out onto the deck as well.  "You're pretty good with that astrology stuff."

"Did you get a load of Ryuu and Mikoto snoozing on the couch in there?  It reeks of something illegal," Blade laughed.

"Yeah, we came up with a new nickname for him.  The pedophile.  We can call him 'The Ped' for short."

"You two are sick," Kashiya rolled her eyes.  "Besides, there's nothing illegal about it.  He's seventeen and she's fifteen.  If he was your guys' age it'd be a whole different story."

Blade stuck his tongue out at her and walked over to start bothering Seth.  The older man just so happened to still be examining the picture he had taken.  Blade peered around his shoulder and caught a glimpse of it as well.

"You soul stealer!" he gasped, pointing an accusing finger at the silver haired man.  Seth stared at him in bewilderment, as did Kashiya.

After thinking for a while, Seth finally figured out what he meant.  "Oh, don't tell me you believe in that stupid old lady's tale."

"So what if I do?"

"You believe that a camera sucks people's souls out?" Kashiya laughed.

"It's no joking matter!" Blaise argued for his brother.  

Seth smiled evilly and pulled his camera out, the twins promptly ran back inside the main room, zipped through there, and locked themselves into their bedroom.

The sudden noise, startled Mikoto and she opened her eyes.  She glanced around the room for a while, trying to get her eyes to focus when she looked down to see Ryuu doing the same.  She gasped in shock and jumped, knocking Ryuu off of her lap.  He landed with a thud on the floor.

"Oh my gosh, are you all right?" she asked, bending down next to him.  "I'm so sorry, you startled me…I completely forgot…"

"I'm fine," he laughed, sitting on his knees.  

"Are you sure?" 

Ryuu smiled big and looked her, directly in the eye.  "Yes, you scared me more than anything else," then still smiling, he tickled her in the side and stood up.  "Well, I don't know about you, but I slept really well last night!" He walked out to the deck.

Mikoto didn't say anything for a while.  Her heart was still pounding.  But all she could think was that she had slept really well too.  

"Wow!!!" she heard Ryuu exclaim.  "This is amazing!  So this is the Forgotten Continent?!  Where are we landing?"  She walked outside to see where they were as well.

"Calm down, lover boy," Seth was telling Ryuu.  

"And get down from that railing!  You're making me nervous!" Kashiya yelled at him.

Instead of walking completely outside, she walked back into the ship and headed in the direction of the cockpit.  Everyone had probably seen them on the couch when they had woken up, why hadn't she woken earlier?  She typically didn't have a problem with sleeping in, only recently did she have this problem.

When she made it to the cockpit, she saw that they were indeed hovering over their first stop: Ipsens's Castle.  

While they weren't going to actually go inside, there were bound to be some artifacts from a long time ago around the ruins of the strange castle.  "Everyone, please stand inside the ship," she said into the intercom.  "I am getting ready to begin the landing procedure."

She waited for a few moments before actually landing the ship to make sure that everyone got a chance to get inside.  The Red Rose shook when it touched ground, and with a sigh, Mikoto walked back into the main room to see everyone gathered.

"Okay," she said quietly.  "Everyone, grab your belongings.  We're going to set up camp."

"Why can't we stay on the airship?" Blade asked.

"Yeah, there're beds in here!"

"Because, we're going to wander from the airship.  If you want to walk back to this every time we travel, you're nuts."

It seemed as if everyone groaned in unison, but they said nothing and went to get their luggage and one by one everyone exited the ship and stepped onto the parched, soil of the Forgotten Continent.

"This place is desolate…" Seth said, glancing across the vicinity.

"Yeah, standing on the ground you can see for fifty miles.  I'm sure if you stood on a tuna can you could see about one hundred!" Blade laughed.

"Why's the dirt red?" Blaise asked, kicking at the ground, making the layer of topsoil rise in a cloud of dust.

Kashiya shrugged, "What an ingenious question.  Next time, why don't you ask why the sky is blue?" 

"Enough bickering, you two…" Mikoto sighed.  

The first day, as the Genome recalled, was always the longest day, because, not only did they have to set up camp, everyone was still just getting used to having to live with each other.  Not to mention, today they had to find a reliable source of water.  

"Hey, Seth, I didn't bring a tent, did you?" Ryuu asked as he dragged all of his belongings from the airship.

"Yeah."

"Do you have any room?"

"Yeah."

"Can I tent with you?

"Yeah."

"I love your one word answers…" Ryuu laughed, dropping all of his suitcases at the end of the boarding ramp.

Kashiya ran over to Mikoto, "I had a short budget for this trip, and since I was supposed to be a medic, I spent a lot of money on different medicines.  By the time I was done, I didn't have much money left, and I couldn't afford a tent."

Mikoto would have groaned aloud had she not remembered her manners at the very last second.  "I don't think I have any extra tents…"

"Hey, Kash!  You can stay in our tent!" the twins yelled, winking at her.

The woman's lips formed a scowl and she turned around to flip them off.  "Sorry about that, but I was wondering if you had enough room in your tent for me to squeeze in."

"Sure," the Genome sighed.  The only thought that helped keep the poor girl optimistic was that Gaia was home to many different races of beings; maybe seeing a tail wouldn't be such a big deal with Kashiya.  Then again, Mikoto would do her best to hide it from her, and if the day came then…it came.

"Seth, where do you think would be a good place to set up camp?" Mikoto yelled.

The man meandered over to an area where the ground was less rocky and more flat.  "This would be fine."

With a grunt, Mikoto dropped the tent and all of her belongings where he indicated.  "All right, Kashiya, help me with the tent."

The rest of the gang followed in suit.

The sun beat down over their heads.  Morning, and already the weather was miserable.  Sweat rolled down Mikoto's face and stung her eyes as she hammered stakes into the parched soil.  On the other side of the tent, Kashiya was doing the same.  After Mikoto finished driving one stake into the ground, she wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand, then started in on a new stake.

From behind her, she heard one of the twins swear loudly then heard the sound of a mallet hitting the ground.  The other twin was laughing at his brother, "You idiot, you can't even use a mallet without hitting your own thumb!"

"Shut up, I didn't ask for your opinion!"

Mikoto stood up and once again wiped the sweat from her face, leaving a trail of dirt across it.  "Look, you two, since you don't seem to be getting anywhere, I'll set up your tent..  Will you go look for water?"

"Water?  On a continent like this?  Does this place look like it has water?!"

"I've been here several times before, Blade," she rolled her eyes, "You can trust me, there's water."

"I'm not drinking water that just comes out of some pond!  I'll get malaria or something!"

"You get that from mosquitoes, moron," Seth grunted as he and Ryuu worked to pull canvas over the top of their tent to create a small overhang for shadow from the sweltering sun.

"You get my point."

"It's not for drinking purposes," Mikoto said, "I have bottled water that should last us the entire journey.  _If_ we use it sparingly."

"Then what do we need to find water for?"

"You're going to want a bath eventually, won't you?" Kashiya yelled.

The twins grumbled something incoherent and walked off.  Mikoto shook her head and helped Kashiya finish with their tent before moving on to the twins'.  

After camp had been set up, and after water had been found, everyone used the rest of the day to lounge around.  There wasn't much of a point doing any digging that day anyway, since they'd already worked all morning.  

When it was dark, the air finally started to cool down.  But not in a good way; the absence of the sun beating down on them turned the atmosphere much cooler.  After Seth started a fire, he, Mikoto, Ryuu and Kashiya all sat around it.  Kashiya read a book, while Ryuu made small talk.  Both Seth and Mikoto sat there and listened, neither spoke very much.  A few feet off, Blaise and Blade were sparring with each other again.  That had seemed to become their favorite pastime.  

Still, after an hour or so of sparring, the twins decided that they were sick of it, and sat down around the fire with everyone else.  They sat on either side of Kashiya.  With a giant sigh, she pushed them away from her.  "You smell awful," she complained, "Did you put on deodorant today?"

"Nope, forgot to pack that…"

"Oh, gross!" she gasped, then promptly stood up and sat on the log next to Seth.

Blaise and Blade were snickering, "I was just kidding!" Blaise gasped.  "C'mon, Kash!  We were just joking with you!"

"I didn't find it very funny, just disgusting.  And stop calling me Kash!"

The next one to stand up was Mikoto.  She knew she had to beat Kashiya into the tent so that she could get dressed without the woman noticing her tail.  "I'm going to bed," she announced, throwing the stick she had been fumbling with into the fire.  

"Goodnight," several people chorused at once.

Mikoto nodded at all of them, and walked over to the tent she would be sharing with Kashiya.  Tiredly, she crawled inside.  By the time she finally hit the pillow, sleep was easily overtaking her tired body.  Just as her eyelids were slowly closing, she saw the outline of Kashiya crawl into the tent as well and occupy the sleeping bag beside her.  Outside she saw the shadows of the twins going into their own tent.  

The Genome yawned wide and nuzzled her face deeper into her pillow.  This time around she had managed to hire a very interesting crew of treasure hunters.  God permit they would get something accomplished the next day.

*          *          *

And thus ends Keep Yourself Alive, chapter seven.  Sorry for the wait, but at least you got to read it, ne?  If anyone is interested, we have a lot of art posted on our website if you would like to check it out.  Most of it is for KYA (As of now we have two pictures of Ryuu, one of Kashiya, one of Blaise/Blade, one of Mikoto, and one of Mikoto/Ryuu).  If you have time, it would be great for you to check them out!  (And sign our guestbook!)  Also, if you keep up with our other stories (like 'Taming the Lion') we have three fanarts posted that are Squall/Selphie pairing (from FF8).  The link is on our profile if you want it!  (And if anyone is interested in drawing a fanart of Seth (or anyone else for that matter), that would be awesome since neither Bree or I could draw a good picture of him) -- Email all drawings to us at CuteMooglez@hotmail.com   ^o^  Oh, and don't forget to review!

**Kupo!**


	8. Let me Live

**Dark Ice Dragon**: Well, sure the Red Rose has windows level with the beds. o The great thing about not really getting to see inside most of the rooms of the ship in the game, is that you can add whatever you want to it. So, I guess it's a matter of what _you _think the Red Rose looks like. And Blade's quote that confused you, that's just saying that the ground is so flat that just standing in one place it seems like you can see for forever. The only things I can compare it to would be Texas or maybe even Arizona, where it seems like there is nothing but dirt and a few cactuses as far as the eye can see. (I don't know if that helped you or not) 

**Shana Skye: **I hope you enjoy Keep Yourself Alive as much as you enjoyed WWTLF.

**Robshi: **Cameras have also been around for a loooong time.

Chapter 8

Every morning since the group had set out for treasure hunting, it seemed that Mikoto was always awoken in unpleasant ways. There was the first night when she woke up with Ryuu on her lap, giving her quite a scare. Then, from there on out, most awakings were due to either the twins causing trouble, such as pouring a bucket of cold water on Seth to "liven him up a little", or the twins getting in trouble _for_ causing trouble. Many mornings, Mikoto would awaken to Kashiya poking her head out of the flap of the tent and screaming, "What the hell do you two think you're doing?! You're wasting supplies!"

Then, tired and grumpy, Mikoto would look outside to find Blaise and Blade in the middle of wrapping her tent in toilet paper. "If you two want to wipe yourselves with leaves, go ahead! Hell, use a nice sprig of poison ivy! But I'm sure the _rest _of us would prefer toilet paper!"

"Sheez, Kash. Someone on the rag this week?"

Yes…that was the morning ritual. This morning was hardly any different.

"Gee, Kash! You tell us to wet down the sheets and we did. What's the big deal?" Blade asked with a roll of his eyes.

"You used our drinking water! That's the big deal!"

"Hey! No complaints! You said get it wet, you didn't specify what kind of water you wanted!"

"Mikoto asked you to find a reliable source of water! You were supposed to use _that_!" Kashiya raged, waving her arms wildly.

"And get malaria?!"

"You and your malaria obsession! I hope you _do _get it! And when it happens, I'm not treating you."

Mikoto stifled a laugh, then quickly changed into some clothes. When she set foot out of her tent, she saw that Ryuu was doing the same. He was still barefoot and only had on a pair of pajama pants, his dark hair was disheveled and he was still rubbing his eyes, yawning. Seth stepped out next, closed the tent behind him and as he approached the group, shoved an unlit cigarette into his mouth. "Must you always insist on being so loud so early?" he asked, agitatedly pushing his silver hair away from his forehead and putting on a pair of sunglasses.

"Nicotine deprived already, Seth?" one of the blonds snickered.

"If you two keep this up, I'll run out of cigarettes before we run out of water," he muttered, fumbling with his lighter.

"Yeah, well if you keep you your smoking habits, you'll get brain cancer!" Blaise shot back.

"That's the most intelligent thing I've heard you say," Kashiya said thoughtfully, "But then again, you'd probably know a lot about brain diseases."

"Screw you, Kash!" the twins screamed at once.

"Shut up…" Mikoto groaned, walking around the group. "Why did you want wet towels anyway, Kashiya?"

"I got a great idea for the first aide tent!" she beamed. "The ancient Madin Sarians came up with the first method of air conditioning. They hung wet sheets over their doors and when the wind blew it created a cool breeze. It's easier for me to work when it's cool…"

"Wuss…" Ryuu said quietly, and instinctively dodged the rock that was aimed at his head.

"And," she continued as she stared daggers at him, "it would be better for the potions to keep them in a cooler environment."

"Excuses…" Ryuu laughed, but that time too slow to dodge the next flying rock. He glared back at Kashiya, rubbing the side of his forehead.

Kashiya snatched the wet sheets from the twins and proceeded to hang them over the entrances of the first aide tent. Mikoto walked over to give her a hand. The first aid tent was pretty big. So big, in fact, Mikoto didn't seem to understand why Kashiya didn't stay there. Inside this tent was a cot covered with white sheets, a table with an expensive-looking chemistry set spread across it, and a chest with just about every plant and healing herb known to man, each in a labeled glass bottle and sealed with a cork. Potions, elixirs and some of Mikoto's ethers were kept in a different box, along with some of Kashiya's homemade potions.

"So, where are you going today?" Kashiya asked as she finished pinning up one of the sheets.

Mikoto finished with hers and wiped her hands together. "I'm thinking of excavating inside the castle since we haven't found much outside."

"Inside? Wouldn't that place be locked up or something?"

"No, it's unlocked." Mikoto walked back over to her tent to grab her dagger and backpack before rejoining the boys.

"Hey!" Kashiya called, poking her head out of the first aide tent. "If you guys find any poisonous monsters, be sure to bring me back some of the venom! I can make all sorts of antidotes and vaccines if you do!"

"Alright," Seth answered, hoisting his rifle onto his back and pocketing his handgun.

"Where'd Ryuu go?" Blaise asked.

As if on cue, Ryuu stumbled out of his tent, buttoning his pants and using his teeth to hold his shirt up as he did so. "I'm here!" he said from around the red fabric. After he got his pants situated, he tried to slip his shoes on, still standing up. After hopping in place for a few moments, he managed that much and made it back to the ring. "Okay, so everyone ready?" he beamed.

"Does everyone have their weapon?" Mikoto asked, scanning everyone. The twins patted their sword sheathes at their belts, and Ryuu did the same for the giant sheath on his back. Seth pulled out his pistol and spun it around his finger. "I take that as a yes," she said softly.

"Okay, men! Move out!" Blade yelled, trying his best to sound like a drill sergeant.

Beside Seth and Ryuu's tent was a rack with many shovels and other tools on it. As everyone passed it, they picked up a piece of equipment and marched on toward the humongous castle.

When the group made it to the door, Mikoto turned around. The four guys were whispering amongst themselves about the appearance of the castle. She cleared her throat and they stopped talking and looked at her. "The architecture in this building is both very old and very dangerous," she warned. "Please, be very cautious when excavating. Also, the monsters that live in here are tough."

"Yes!" Blaise exclaimed, throwing a punch into the air. "I've been waiting for a good challenge!"

Mikoto scowled and he uneasily lowered his fist. "Trust me, they aren't easy to fight."

Seth inhaled a puff from his cigarette and threw the butt on the ground to smother it beneath his boot. "You might want to elaborate, Mik," he suggested.

"Let's put it this way…" she started, "notice how some of the castle is upside-down?" Everyone nodded. "Think of everything being backwards. A powerful weapon against these fiends, is a weak one to us."

Now everyone seemed confused. Mikoto found it comical looking at the twins, their mouths half open and their eyebrows furrowed. "Since all of you have well built weapons the best defense against these guys is magic."

"To put it laymen's terms," Seth sighed, "don't go looking for trouble. We don't want to fight any more of these fiends than we have to."

"Simple enough," Ryuu smiled

Mikoto bit her lip. She was still uneasy about bringing them into the castle. After all, it had been many, many years since she had been forced to go _inside _the building. She had no idea how the structure was holding up, or if it was at all. "Follow me," she said eventually.

She pressed with all her might against the heavy wooden door, but it wasn't opening. Closing her eyes, she pushed her shoulder against the rough surface, but still the door didn't budge. The boys moved in and everyone pushed at once. Slowly, the heavy door began creaking open. Legs straining against the weight and force of the door, the group of five managed to open the door just enough for each to squeeze in.

"Wow. Do you have to do that every time you enter this dang place?" Blaise said between gasps for breath. His hands were resting on his knees.

"I don't remember it being this difficult, but yes," she panted. With a grunt, she pulled herself back up. "Brace yourself, because we have to close it now."

"Wha-?" Ryuu said in disbelief. "Can't we leave it open until we have to leave?"

"We don't want the monsters from inside getting out. Trust me."

A growl came from within a dark corner of the foyer. Mikoto's eyes widened. "Come on. Close the door. Now!"

A pair of eyes was visible, each glowing a dangerous yellow color. "Seth. Fire a couple of shots! Try to scare it off!" Mikoto managed as she and the twins pressed with all their might to shut the door.

A series of loud bangs echoed through the foyer, and the response they got was not one Mikoto was hoping. The growling became louder and the eyes were stealthily getting closer.

"Shit…" Seth muttered, pocketing the pistol. "It's not working, Mikoto!" he announced, loudly.

"I see that!" she grunted as she continued to struggle against the door. It was still open, though not enough for anything to get through. "We can't get the door shut in time!"

"What do we do?" she heard Ryuu yell.

Then, it clicked. "I have an idea!" she exclaimed, "When it starts running for us, dash to either the right or left. Does everyone understand!?"

A chorus of several hurried and nervous 'yeahs' echoed around her. "I'll let you know when!" Mikoto kept her gaze on the two yellow eyes, still creeping closer. She could start to see what else was around it. It was a Cerberus; it's brown fur matted and fangs dripping saliva. Its pace quickened, now it was at a canter. Chains from around its ankles clacked against the floor. As soon as it started to pick up speed, Mikoto screeched, "Now! Go, go, go!" She dashed to her left and she felt the wind sweep past her as several people dashed in the opposite direction.

She tripped over something on the ground and before she could do anything to catch herself, whoever was running behind her had done the same and had fallen on top of her. "Stay down!" it was Seth's voice.

There was a sickening thud as the beast ran directly into the door. What little light was coming into the foyer from the crack in the door was gone completely as the force of the collision finished the shutting of the door all together.

"What do we do now, boss?" came the distinct voice of one of the twins.

"Shhh!" she shushed him. Her eyes were still on the faint silhouette of the fiend. She shoved Seth off of her and looked desperately around, trying to formulate some sort of plan. Given very little options, she eventually called out, "Close your eyes everyone!" The yellow eyes snapped in her direction, where the shout had come from.

Almost in a single motion she sheathed her dagger, held her hands up in a magic seal and cried, "Flare!" For a brief moment the entire foyer was alight with a blinding crimson explosion, and the beast shrieked in agony as it was engulfed in the flames.

By the time the flame subsided, the entire area smelled like burnt hair and all that was left in the middle of the foyer was a very singed carcass of a monster. It was awkwardly silent. Mikoto sighed and fumbled around in her backpack, finally pulling out a flashlight. "Did someone else bring the lantern?"

The only response she got was a strange squeal that might have been a yes, and the switching on of the said lantern. She could see Blaise, Blade and Ryuu each standing in awe on the opposite side of the foyer and when she turned around she saw Seth sitting on the ground, his mouth agape.

"Let's hope we don't run into another one of those," she said quietly. Very slowly, almost as if they had a new respect for the Genome, the three boys on the other side of the room approached her. When Blade was close enough, she snatched the lantern from him and threw the flashlight down to Seth. "Come on, we can't find anything just standing here."

"Holy mother of-" Seth started, but Mikoto held up a hand.

"We'll talk about it later," she stated, quite firmly.

Kashiya was grinding up herbs for a potion when she noticed someone walking back to camp, completely alone, holding onto his arm. She poked her head out of the first aid tent to get a better look and saw the person was Seth. Over the past few weeks, it would be an understatement to say that Kashiya had 'taken a liking' to Seth.

With glee, she shouted, "Hey, Seth! Over here! What's wrong with your arm?"

He was still quite a bit away from camp, but not so far that he couldn't hear her. He looked up and was getting ready to answer when there was a shriek that came from behind him. Caught completely off guard, he couldn't raise his gun in time. A Veteran swooped down from the sky and using its mighty claws picked him up by the shoulders and dropped him again from about ten feet above the ground.

"Oh, God!" Kashiya murmured, running from the tent. "Get back! Leave him alone!" she screamed, waving her arms wildly around. The flying monster only turned his eye on her and shrieked again; a loud piercing cry so horrible she had to cover her ears and squeeze her eyes shut.

The fiend stopped its horrid cry and Kashiya reopened her eyes. A few multi-colored strands of hair were in her face. Quickly, she blew them out of the way and ran to Seth's side. He was unconscious and bleeding freely from around his shoulders, the arm he had been holding earlier, if it wasn't before, was now dislocated.

With another cry, the Veteran started to gain more height. Kashiya calculated that it was about ready to swoop again. Looking every which way for an idea, she grasped Seth's rifle and several shells for reloading purposes. She pointed it at the flying beast, aiming precisely for its eye. By the time she pulled the trigger, he had moved and she missed its eye and got the wing instead. She tried a second time, this time she hit her target. Even though blinded, the Veteran didn't seem fazed.

Out of frustration, she threw the gun on the parched soil. The beast was descending blindly. Its huge mouth was open, getting ready to let out another piercing shriek. As a last resort, Kashiya reached into a pouch around her thigh and pulled out a homemade grenade of hers. Using her teeth, she pulled the pin and threw it, directly into the monster's mouth.

In a last ditch effort to keep Seth from obtaining any more injuries Kashiya covered him with her own body. A few seconds turned into an eternity, then there was a loud explosion. She felt parts of the monsters hide hit her in the back and stick in her hair.

Cleanliness was the last thing on her mind at the moment. Once she was sure the beast was dead, she looked at Seth, brushing his silver hair back. "Seth, Seth!!? Are you conscious?"

No response.

She didn't know what to do. There was no way she could move him without injuring him further, but if she didn't get him back to camp, they could be attacked again. "It's alright, Seth. I'm going to take you back to camp…" she said to the unconscious body.

She pulled his arm around her shoulder and dragged him back. He was heavy, and much taller than her, thus making the struggle back to camp even more difficult. Huffing and puffing for breath, Kashiya managed to struggle back into the first aid tent. With even more difficulty, she managed to lay Seth down in the cot.

"Oh, God…" she was repeating frantically. Using what was left in her canteen, she washed her hands off and went back to where Seth lay. She carefully removed his shirt and inspected the deep cuts on his shoulders. "It's my fault, I distracted him…" she was muttering. Shakily, she poured an antiseptic over the wound and his muscle spazed beneath the liquid. The liquid began to foam and bubble around his ripped muscle tissue. "It's infected… Oh lord, I hope Mikoto gets back soon…" she said quietly to herself, working some more medicine into the wound with a cloth.

She had a potion that was meant to treat infection, but he couldn't take it as long as he was unconscious, and she definitely didn't have the tools to give it to him in shot form. Still keeping pressure on his right shoulder with one of her hands, she used her spare hand to grasp the potion bottle, rip the cork from it with her teeth, spit the cork on the ground, and pour the liquid into her own mouth. She discarded the empty potion bottle and bent over the silver haired man, used her unoccupied hand to steady his chin, and transferred this liquid from her mouth into his. When there was no more liquid left in her mouth, she turned her head and spat, the bitter taste of the potion still fresh in her mouth. Seth sputtered and tried to sit up, but Kashiya sat on the cot next to him and pressed him firmly back against the mattress.

"Stay put, I still need to wrap you."

She dug around in one of the chests and pulled out a fresh roll of gauze. "Can you sit up?" she asked. He nodded, and with her added effort, managed to sit upright as she wrapped his upper body in thick white bandages.

Seth noted as she worked, that she definitely was very professional about it. Honestly, he had come in contact with surgeons who were more careless with their patients. Her steady hands were constantly moving around him in order to wrap the wounds evenly. When she finally finished, he felt her gently pulling him back down onto the mattress.

She sighed and stood over by the flaps of the tent, rubbing her hands up and down her arms as she thought. She knew she had to push his arm back into place, but she was still contemplating about how she was going to go about doing that.

With a shake of her head, she walked back over to the middle of the tent and began picking up scraps of bloody cloth and discarding them in a box full of trash. When she successfully managed this, she used a clean washcloth to try and wipe the stains from her shirt, consisting of Seth's blood and Veteran innards.

"Oh, man, this was a good shirt too…" she muttered as she worked the washcloth against her ruined top. With a sigh of disgust she gave up and threw the towel against the ground.

"Sorry you ruined your shirt," Seth offered as he watched her.

"It's not your fault," she said with a weak smile. "It's not like you _planned_ on being attacked by a ferocious beast." She sat down on a chest facing him.

"I suppose," he mumbled. He wanted a cigarette in the worst way. He needed that nicotine to calm him down and take some of the pain away. Impatiently, he reached for his vest that was lying on the ground, despite the pain in his shoulders, and dug through the pocket before pulling out a pack and a lighter. Kashiya, however, beat him to it.

"No smoking, not while you're in this condition. And most certainly not in the first aid tent," she stated, snatching the pack of cigarettes and lighter from him and pocketing them.

"Stop worrying so much, you get grey hair that way," he said, trying to take them back from her, but she wasn't listening. Her attention was somewhere else.

"Mikoto!! I need you over here now!" she began yelling out of the tent.

"What's the matter?" was Mikoto's faint response.

"Seth's hurt badly, and the bleeding won't stop. I've tried everything!"

"I thought it was just his arm."

"He was attacked by something else."

"Ew. I'll say he was attacked by something else," came Ryuu's voice. "What _is _this thing?"

"Are you sure he was attacked?" Blaise laughed.

"Because it looks like this thing was hit one hundred times worse!" Blade finished.

"That's because it got a grenade in its mouth, and if you don't shut up so that Mikoto will come look at Seth, I'll do the same to you!" Kashiya screamed at them.

"Okay, okay, I'm coming…" Mikoto yelled.

She ran back to the first aide tent to see Seth lying in the cot, his upper body heavily bandaged and blood already seeping through the once white cloths. "How long ago did you bandage him up?" she exclaimed.

Just as Kashiya opened her mouth to talk she felt Seth's hand creeping over to her pocket with his cigarettes in it, she quickly swatted it away. "I didn't finish more than twenty minutes ago."

"Get those bandages off of him," Mikoto said, pulling her sleeves up. The tent flap opened again and all of the boys stampeded in as well.

"Might as well hang up signs and call it an all-admittance show," Seth grumbled.

"Ryuu, will you sit him up?" Kashiya asked.

The brunette stumbled forward and pulled him up while Kashiya and Mikoto worked to unwrap the linen from around his torso. "So, what are you planning on doing?"

In her head, Mikoto was cursing herself. She had allowed these people to see too much of her using magic, but now that it was ruined and they knew anyway, what was the point of hiding it anymore? They didn't seem to be bothered by the fact she could summon fireballs into the palm of her hand unless they were being hurled at them.

Once all of the bandages were off, Ryuu laid Seth back against the mattress.

"Ouch, that's gotta hurt," one of the twins mumbled upon seeing Seth's bare shoulders.

Mikoto took a deep breath, placed one hand on Seth's chest and held the other up to form another magical seal. "Curaga." The words were almost inaudible under all of the murmuring in the tent.

Seth's eyes were wide in even more amazement as he felt a strange warmness spread up his entire upper body. Kashiya was also even more amazed to see the bleeding slow down tremendously. "Now all you have to do is relocate his arm and rewrap him," Mikoto said quietly, sitting on the ground. She was starting to feel dizzy, having cast two huge spells in one day. The dizziness meant only one thing; her magic level was getting dangerously low.

Inhaling a huge breath, she stood up and walked over to a chest. "Kashiya, I'm going to take one of my ethers now," she informed as she scooped out a bottle. Upon exiting the tent, she pulled the cork and breathed in the contents of the vial.

"By the way!" she cooed from outside of the first aide tent, "Since Seth isn't able, I want the rest of you boys to start up tonight's fire!"

"We'll be needing the lighter!" Blade yelled, pulling it from Kashiya's pocket. Seth made a strange sound that was a mix between a squeal and a grunt. The three boys filed out of the tent and started building the fire. Kashiya left the first aide tent as well and went back to her and Mikoto's tent.

"What are you doing?" Mikoto asked.

"I'm going to take a bath. I'm afraid if I don't soon, I'll be picking Veteran guts from my hair for weeks!" she groaned. "Why don't you come too? There're so many guys around, I miss having girl talk!"

In her head, Mikoto racked her brain for all possible ways to politely say no, but it was in vain. Kashiya had already grasped all of her and Mikoto's bath supplies, towels, and then grabbed Mikoto by the arm to drag her to the lake the twins had found.

"Where you two going?" Ryuu asked as they bustled past.

"Taking a bath…" Kashiya said casually, then she turned to glare at all three of them, "And if any one of you even thinks about spying I will rip your eyeballs out and use them in my potions. Capice?"

"Uh…y-yeah…" Ryuu said slowly, watching them go.

"K-Kashiya…ya know…" Mikoto stuttered nervously, "I just took a bath yesterday…I wasn't planning on taking another one until tomorrow!"

"That's alright. Nothing wrong with being clean, right?"

_Well…_she told herself, _it was bound to happen, wasn't it?_

When the two made it to the lake, Kashiya casually stripped down and walked into the water. "Oh wow! It feels great! It's so cool! Come on in, Mik!" she called over to the Genome.

Mikoto, who always bathed either after everyone else was asleep or early before anyone woke up, bit her lip and nervously rubbed her legs together. "Naw, I'll sit right here and talk to you…" she tried.

"Oh, c'mon! Live a little, child! We're both girls, it's not like I'm going to rape you or anything," Kashiya rolled her eyes and dunked her head underwater. When she came up, strips of red, purple and blue hair was hanging in front of her eye. She merely shook her head, much like a dog, and let all of her hair flop to the side.

Mikoto smiled in spite of herself. She had actually never seen Kashiya's right eye. She almost suspected it to be missing, much like Beatrix. But it was there, a vibrant lavender color just like its twin, just always covered by hair.

"Get in! The water feels awesome!" When Mikoto didn't respond, Kashiya groaned and pulled herself up onto a rock. "What's wrong? You have some sort of growth you're embarrassed about?"

Mikoto's jaw almost dropped. How come Kashiya was so good at blindly guessing things and not realizing it?

"Libra! Libra all the way! That's your star sign, isn't it?" Well, she was 'awoken' around that part of the lunar calendar, but she didn't think of herself being 'born' under that star sign. "You're so introverted and shy, you really need to loosen up! Live a little! Your life is going to pass right by you if you don't!"

_That's unlikely,_ she thought bitterly, but Kashiya continued to glare at her as if it was a crime that she wasn't bathing as well. Finally, she reluctantly consented. "…Okay. But…not a word of it to anyone, okay?"

"What, do you really have a growth?" Kashiya asked, now somewhat confused.

Feeling herself blush a bright red, she stripped down as well, her tail swinging into plain view.

"Wow!" Kashiya exclaimed. "I've heard of it, but I would have never believed it! They had records of people in the Alexandrian royal family that had tails! Are you related to them?"

"No," she lied, it came out a bit quicker than she intended though. "But please, don't tell anyone!"

"I am sworn to secrecy!" Kashiya held up a hand and smiled to prove her point. "But why not show something like that off? I would!"

"Let's just say that…some people aren't as open minded as they should be…"

"Amen to that!" Kashiya laughed. "I can relate. Oh boy, can I relate."

Mikoto was just about to ask why, when Kashiya ducked underwater again and popped back out. "Oh wow. I feel so much better! I had that crap all over me! That was disgusting. Lets hope that never happens again."

"So, you blew up a Veteran with one of your grenades?"

"Yeah, and I got to wear the spoils of the battle," she grimaced. "Do you think there's a chance of getting it all off my clothes?"

"The guts? Yes. Blood? Probably not."

"Damn," Kashiya grumbled, running some soap through her hair. "I don't suppose you know any spells that'll get rid of stains do you?" she chuckled at her own joke. "By the way, in all honesty, you need to teach me some of those spells! I was so scared today; I thought that Seth was really in for it. I was afraid he'd die of blood loss before you showed up."

"Y-You want to…"

"Yes, I think it would be very beneficial for me to learn some healing spells, don't you think? If the worst case scenario were to happen?"

"We'll have to see…and if I do, it'll be in secret. I don't want to be giving magic lessons to everyone," Mikoto smiled meekly.

"Oh really?! That would be awesome!" Kashiya squealed.

They weren't in the lake much longer before they saw smoke rising from the campsite.

"Oh God…" Kashiya mumbled, wringing her hair out. "That means one of two things. Either they succeeded in building a fire, or the tents are burning."

Hurriedly, the two girls dressed and ran back to camp, towels wrapped around their wet hair.

"Wow, I'm impressed, you managed to start a fire without killing anyone," Kashiya laughed.

"Yes, we are competent fire builders, thank you very much," Blade replied, sticking his tongue out. Mikoto sat on a log and busied herself with drying her hair with the towel.

"Who's cookin' tonight?" Blaise yelled.

"Not me! I cooked last night!" Kashiya yelled, walking back to her tent to deposit her stuff.

"Not Ryuu!" Seth called from within the infirmary tent. "I don't know what the hell he tried to feed us last time."

"Kashiya," Ryuu laughed, "You might want to bring him out here. I'm sure he doesn't want to sit in there and yell at us all night."

"You're probably right. Give me a hand, will you?"

Ryuu abandoned his spot, poking at the fire to help Kashiya bring Seth out to the campfire. Once everyone was assembled, Mikoto pulled their meal out of a cooler; hotdogs. A fairly simple meal, and everyone could prepare his or her own. The condiments were spread out on a towel on the ground beside the fire.

"Oh, yeah, Kashiya," Mikoto started up. "You know what we were talking about earlier? At the lake? I said that people weren't as open minded as they should be, and you said you could relate. I was meaning to ask you what you meant, but we got sidetracked."

"Oh, that. Well, that's a long story."

"Awww, c'mon, Kash! Let's hear it!" Blade exclaimed, impaling his hotdog on a stick and holding it above the flame.

"Well, ever since I was relatively young I had an interest in alchemy. My parents didn't really understand it. They disregarded it most of the time. Sure, they bought me my first chemistry set, but only because they wanted me to study chemistry. When they found out I was mixing and making potions they got kind of peeved at me.

"They had this entire delusional thought of what they wanted me to be when I was older. Since I was so interested in making potions, they wanted me to be a doctor. They expected me to go to medical school. But I told them, I had no interest in that sort of thing. I wanted to mix potions. That was one of the things that they couldn't understand about me.

"When I was in the junior high, a friend of mine got me interested in the legends and horoscopes. They thought that my interest in these areas were sacrilegious. They constantly told me that I shouldn't be interested in horoscopes. 'It's the work of the devil,'" she said, imitating her mother's voice. "They didn't want me to hang out with my friend anymore. They said she was a bad influence. 'Too free willed'. But, whatever... I did anyway.

"So, then what happened?" Ryuu asked. "Do your parents still think that way?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know?" the twins asked together.

"I moved out when I was fifteen. I got so angry at them, I just left. That's when I went to Lindblum. I heard that people get started off on a lot of artistic professions there, so I took some money from home, and my friend and I both ran away to Lindblum. We shared an apartment for several years. I became an alchemist's apprentice, constantly picking up snippets of legends here and there from storytellers and books that I've read."

"What happened to your friend?" Seth asked.

"Oh…she got married," Kashiya smiled faintly. "I don't get to see her very much anymore. She moved to Alexandria with her husband, that's where he's originally from. We talk every once and a while, and she visits whenever she can."

Kashiya sighed and leaned back against her log, tearing off a piece of a hotdog bun. She didn't eat processed meat, or meat at all for that matter. "So, what about you guys? Lets hear your guys' life stories."

"Well," Blaise started. "There's not much to tell with us."

"Yeah, ma and dad divorced a few years ago."

"We live with ma, we see dad on the weekends and birthdays."

"We have a little sister, she's five…"

"No, she's four."

"I thought she was five…?"

The two thought for a moment between themselves, and finally Blade started back up. "Anyway, she's four or five. Her name is Ellie."

"Oh, and we have a dog named Schnitzel."

"A dog named Schnitzel?" Mikoto asked.

"Yeah. He looks like one too!"

"That's so…incredibly wrong…" Kashiya said, shaking her head. "How about you Ryuu?"

"Well, dad was in the Lindblum army when I was little. He was actually one of the Regent's bodyguards, to be exact. But he had to quit the service because he was shot in the spinal column. He's paralyzed from the waist down. So, he couldn't work anymore. Mom never worked in her life, so for a while she did maid work, but stopped after a couple of months. My older brother and I work to support the family. But, you see, he's an actor, and his pay is solely dependant on how well the shows he performs sells. So, his job is pretty…manic. He can make a lot of money sometimes, and sometimes he makes little to nothing.

"For me, I just have a hard time keeping a job," he laughed nervously. He chewed on his lip as he tried to think of what else to say. "I already told you about my motorcycles, so there's really not much else to say."

"Okay, Seth? C'mon, buddy! Your turn!" Blade said in a singsong voice.

"Shut up. You're annoying," Seth grunted.

"You just don't want to tell us!" Blaise prodded.

"Wow, it takes a genius to figure that one out, doesn't it?"

"Oh, don't be a party pooper!" the twins whined.

"Fine, God, I'll tell you." He ran a hand through his hair, mumbling about how much he wanted a cigarette. "I don't remember my mom. She was depressed after I was born and committed suicide when I was little. Too little to remember. Dad was a drinker. I didn't see much of him either. Typically he left me with the neighbors or dumped me with his parents while he went out and partied. I was independent by the age of twelve. I could cook for myself and clean and was already making the majority of the income of the house. Dad was constantly spending more on alcohol, especially after he lost his night job as an airship engineer. By this point, he would drink straight out of a bottle of vodka.

"Before long, he started selling things around the house for more alcohol money. The beds, the radio…anything that would bring in a few extra gil. And, I guess alcohol does some really shitty things to you, because when we ran out of things of value in the house, he tried to sell me to some dumbass drug dealer."

"He _what?!_" Kashiya exclaimed. "That's horrible!"

Seth shrugged and tried again to steal his cigarettes from her. When he was unsuccessful once again, he muttered a profanity under his breath and said, "He's behind bars now. I haven't talked to him in over ten years."

"That's awful, I'm really sorry to hear that, Seth," Mikoto said quietly. She felt her eyes sting, she wanted so badly to cry. She could just see, little Seth, crying alone in his empty house. Dad came home drunk again, yelling at his only son to 'shut the fuck up before I give you something to cry about!' Not knowing what else to do, she bit on her tongue, hoping maybe if she caused herself pain it would get her mind away from the awful mental images she was getting.

"So, what about you, Mikoto? Let's hear your past!"

"Yeah, I'm curious too!" Kashiya exclaimed.

"No, I'll pass."

"Come on! Everyone else told theirs!" Blade whined.

"Yeah, that's not fair! You're a hypocrite!"

"Hypocrite or not, I'm the one paying all of you," she said, looking down on the twins as she stood up. "Sorry if it's unfair, but that's life for you. Who ever said life was going to be fair?" She could _really _attest to that. Life was most certainly never fair to her, nor was fate or all other supernatural forces that were working against her.

Trying to keep her emotions under control, the blond Genome stumbled back into her tent. She heard them murmuring to each other, and yet she didn't care. As much as she wanted to just curl into a ball and cry into her pillow just for the sake of crying, she knew she had to be stronger than that. So, instead, she stared up at the canvas overhead and tried with all her might not to think about what she heard at the campfire.

"Man, what's up with her? She never wants to talk about herself," one of the twins complained, throwing a stick into the fire and watching it catch.

Kashiya straightened up and looked at them, shaking her head, "Is that some sort of problem?"

"Yes! What if her childhood was a nightmare? She should probably get it off of her chest rather than wallowing in it!" Blaise shouted.

"Guys, keep it down," Seth rolled his eyes.

"What do you know about her? You've known her longer than any of us!" Blade continued.

"I'm sworn to secrecy."

"What?! So you do know something?!"

"Drop it you two! If she doesn't want us to know about it than we need to respect that!" Kashiya yelled, throwing a stick at the twin blonds.

"Kash is right," Ryuu said, drawing something in the dirt with a finger.

"How did you get it out of her then?"

"We were drunk."

"…You were drunk? With her? That's sick! You sick, perverted old man!"

"I am not old or perverted!"

"Then how the hell could you allow her to get drunk?!"

"Look, we ran out of water the last time she went treasure hunting. She had brought along alcohol for cooking purposes. She had also heard that alcohol lasts longer than water, so we were drinking it to keep hydrated, not to get drunk. The child had no alcohol tolerance whatsoever, and she was slobbering drunk after a couple of drinks."

"Well, that explains it a little…" Kashiya said slowly, still sounding as if she was slightly worried about the entire predicament.

"Anyway, what she did tell me was pretty messed up. I think either the alcohol messed with her mind and she was just saying a bunch of strange shit, or the alcohol I had consumed made me screw up what I heard."

"Was it that bad?"

"Just strange. But like I said, I'm not sure that I heard correctly."

"And you're not going to tell us!?" the twins groaned.

"No, sorry."

Ryuu stood up from the fire next and walked toward the tents.

"Going to bed so early?"

"I'm going to check on Ms. Tribal," he answered. "I think we upset her."

Hands jammed firmly in his pockets, he strutted over to her tent and tapped on the canvas flap to make his presence known. "Is that you, Kashiya?" Mikoto's voice came in from the inside.

Ryuu smiled and poked his head in, "No, just me."

Mikoto felt her face burn red and she wanted to hide. "Oh, hey Ryuu."

He sat on the sleeping bag in front of her, crossing his legs. "You sure ran away from the campfire fast. Is there anything you want to talk about?"

"No, I'm just tired, that's all."

Ryuu rubbed the back of his head and smiled uneasily. He wasn't sure how to word what he was getting ready to say. "Ya know, Blaise made a very good comment. If you have something you want to say, you really should let _someone _know. Even if it isn't me, even if it's Kashiya. You shouldn't just wallow in sorrow. It's good to get something off your chest every once in a while."

"I'll keep that in mind…" she said, a bit more venom in her voice than she meant.

"And you know, I'm here too. I'd like to know about your past too…" he continued.

Mikoto rolled her eyes and stood up from the sleeping bag. She walked directly past Ryuu and out of the tent. "Ms. Tribal, I don't mean to upset you!" he pleaded. She heard him scramble up as well and follow her outside, the tent flaps swinging as he ran through them. "I only want to help!"

"Yeah, as does everyone else…" she muttered.

"No, Ms. Tribal! I'm very serious, I really want to help you. You seem so…lost and alone." Still, she paid no heed to what he was saying, merely continued her stride away from him. Yet, Ryuu wasn't giving up either. He kept up his steady pace behind her, like a talking shadow. They were no longer even close to camp. Now they were standing in the middle of nowhere, dry soil under their bare feet, looking back on the roaring fire that Kashiya, Seth, Blaise and Blade were still tending. "Mikoto…please…"

Mikoto. That was only the second time he actually called her by her first name. And on top of everything else, he sounded so sincere when he said it. She felt her defenses crumble, the emotional wall she was constantly trying to keep intact was tumbling down, and all he had to do was say her name.

She needed to keep him away from her. He was dangerous. And maybe, just maybe, her past was the only thing that could truly scare him away.

"Please, Mikoto, just tell me."

"Fine…" she seethed, clenching her fists and giving her all so that the angry tears that were collecting in her eyes wouldn't run down her red face. "You want to know about my past, I'll tell you!"

To be continued….

**A/N: ** We tried to balance between funny and serious in this chapter. We hope that we were successful in doing so. Please, leave us a review. Reviews are the only way we know that people are reading. o


	9. Now I'm Here

**_LIME_** Warning

(May cause rating to go up in future chapters)

Chapter 9

Mikoto felt herself shaking violently.  Her fists were squeezed shut so tightly that she could feel her nails boring into her skin.  In all of her fury, she almost didn't notice the hand that cupped her shoulder.  She glanced at the hand, then traced the arm up to the owner's face.

She'd already blown up at him.  There was no going back now.  She sat on the ground and hugged her knees to her chest.  "You really want to know?" she croaked out.  It was becoming difficult to control her emotions again.  Ryuu merely nodded.

She took a shuddering breath and ran her hand through her blond hair.  If she were going to tell him her past as it really was, he wouldn't believe a word she said.  She had to make it sound believable for a teenage boy. 

"My…father…" she started slowly, "…was a scientist, and an awful man.  I had two older brothers.  He did experiments on each and every one of us.  He tested all sorts of theories on us.  We were like his guinea pigs."

"That's terrible…" Ryuu muttered.

"When my eldest brother, Kuja, was thirteen, he ran away from home.  I was only three at the time.  He probably could have gotten away with it, but he came back one night to try and get my other brother out of there."

"What about you?"

Mikoto ignored the question and continued, "My father caught him entering our house and completely beat him for several days on end.  He taunted him with: 'This'll teach you to run away from me,' and 'Do you want to run away again?' 

"A year later, my father wanted Kuja to do something for him, something Kuja was not interested in doing at all.  So, instead of listening to him, he took Zidane who was five at the time, with him.  They ran away to Lindblum, but when father saw that his airship was gone, he was furious.  He searched everywhere for them endlessly.

"The day my brothers arrived in Lindblum, they were searching for shelter when several of my father's…henchmen saw them.  Zidane, with Kuja's help was able to escape from capture, but Kuja was not so lucky.  He was taken back home to my father.

"Father was so angry at him for losing track of his younger brother.  We lived far away from Lindblum at the time, and Kuja was beaten all over again.  I was around four and just learning magic from a book my father owned.  I went into Kuja's room at night and healed his wounds.  He asked me how I was able to heal him with a touch of my hand and I told him about father's magic book.  He seemed very interested.  That night he snuck out of his room and went to father's office to read through it.  While practicing a fire spell, he caught my father's desk on fire and instead of extinguishing it, he let it burn and returned to bed. 

"When father woke up the next morning, his office was ruined.  He was so angry, he dragged Kuja in by his hair and yelled and yelled at him.  I watched from the doorway as he beat him to the ground and kicked him in the ribs.  Then, made a mistake.  He called Kuja a 'dirty, rotten defect,' because of an experiment he had done on him long ago.  These words had haunted Kuja his entire life. 

"He got up from the ground despite all his injuries and he punched my father."

Ryuu's eyes grew wide and his mouth hung open. 

"While my father was unconscious, Kuja ran away again."

"Did he take you?"

Mikoto's eyes welled up and she wanted so badly to cry.  "No, I was left at home."

Ryuu sat behind her and put his arms around her, and then he began to rock back and forth with her hoping to comfort her.  There was no use in holding back her tears now, they were already coming full throttle.  She hid her red face in her knees. 

"I stayed with my father and took care of him until I was about thirteen.  He never beat me like he did with Kuja.  I was too mellow and feeble minded for him to waste his time on me.  I just did whatever he told me to, and he left me alone. 

"One day I was outside, and in the distance I saw Zidane, who was around sixteen.  I managed to get him to follow me back to the house.  It was then I found out that something had happened when he and Kuja separated in Lindblum; Zidane couldn't remember anything.  He couldn't remember me, or what his childhood had been like before he left.  Nothing.  I wanted so desperately for him to remember me so that he could take me away from home; take me somewhere else so that I wouldn't have to live with my father anymore."  She was now sobbing uncontrollably into her knees.  Still, he didn't stop her, only continued to listen.

"He couldn't remember, so I met him in secret one night in my father's laboratory.  I was hoping that maybe that environment might spark something, but it didn't.  I told him, and he didn't believe me.  I was so angry and upset at him for forgetting everything so easily when I was forced to live with it for so long.  I sent him to our father.  I'm not sure what happened between them; all I know is that it wasn't good. 

"While Zidane and my father talked, Kuja also came back.  Kuja was now in his twenties, but there was something very different about him.  It was hard for me to believe that someone that used to have such a kind nature could have changed that much.  It was all because of father's abuse of him in all the previous years, and most of all, father constantly calling him a 'defect'.  Kuja had literally gone insane.  I was in my room crying to myself, when I heard shouting. 

"Suddenly, I felt hot.  I couldn't figure out what was going on.  I made to leave my room, but the doorknob was hot to the touch.  Outside, one of Zidane's friends was yelling, 'Get out!  We need to evacuate!  Kuja has gone off the deep end this time!'  Kuja, in a state of fury, I suppose, set fire to the house.  Somehow, I managed to escape with Zidane and his friends on father's most prized airship.  I learned in what little time I had with my brother that he and father had fought, and nearing the end, Kuja finished it up and killed my father.  Father's dying words were, 'Even as I die here, you will have died without ever leaving a mark in this world.'  Kuja couldn't handle being put down again, and he completely destroyed our house.

"Zidane dropped me off in a remote village on the Outer Continent.  I lived there for a while.  Zidane went searching for Kuja, but when he found him, it was too late and he was dead.  He went back to Alexandria and got married to his girlfriend.  I was left in the village.  After a while, I heard that Zidane was having some problems.  His wife had died and he was extremely depressed.  He went so far as to even try to commit suicide.  I moved in to try and help him deal with things." 

Mikoto paused for a few seconds.  She wasn't sure how to tell Ryuu exactly what happened next.  "He wasn't getting better.  He still wanted to die more than anything so that he and his wife could be together."  She quickly dried her eyes and turned around to look at Ryuu, "Have you ever had to make a decision where you'd have to sacrifice your own happiness for someone else's?"

He didn't answer.

"Well, I decided that it was wrong of me to be selfish and keep him here with me.  If he wanted to die so badly, then I should help him along with it.  Now I'm the only one left of my family.  I've been living alone ever since Zidane died."

Ryuu remained silent.  He wasn't sure what to say, so he said nothing, and continued to rhythmically rock her back and forth.  "Then, recently, I found my father's scientific notes.   …Do you know what Trance is?"

"I've heard of it…" Ryuu said quietly.  "It's something that only a minority of the minority can use, right?"

Mikoto nodded.  "Do you know how they're triggered?"

"Well, there's pain…" he said slowly, "…and very strong emotion."

Mikoto nodded again.  "Father found a way to program a Trance within each and every one of his children.  The Trance he programmed into me is so powerful, it could destroy an entire…" she paused, knowing well that if she said the world, he would not believe her, "…city."

Ryuu thought for a while, then he leaned forward to rest his chin on the nape of Mikoto's neck.  "Well, how long did you live before you found out that you were in danger of triggering this Trance?"

_About fifty years_, Mikoto thought.  "A while."

"And you were able to live normally in that time period without triggering your Trance?"

_He's got a good point_.

When she looked at him, she saw that he was smiling again.  A genuine smile that lit up his entire face, even in the vast darkness.  "What if it's a fluke?  Maybe this Trance doesn't exist, and your father is just trying to scare you."

Mikoto turned her body completely around and opened her mouth to argue, but before she was able to say anything Ryuu wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer to him.  Her eyes widened as he drew his face closer to hers until their foreheads were pressed together.  Now she had no other choice but to look deep into his brown eyes.  His grip on her was not so tight that she couldn't move, but she had no desire to do so.  "Maybe…" she consented.

Ryuu smiled again, "We can test it."

Her heart was racing so fast she was sure it would burst through her chest at any second.  Not to mention she was so close to him she knew that he could feel her heartbeat as well, and she was so envious that he was still so calm about it.  "But-" she started, but was unable to finish her statement for Ryuu closed what little distance was between them and lightly pressed his lips to hers, then he slowly pulled away, smirking.

Mikoto was silent now.  Her mouth was opening and closing, forming inaudible words.  With one of his hands, Ryuu reached up and wiped away the trails of tears winding down her face to find that she was still trembling.  He hesitated momentarily, then pressed his lips to her again, only this time he lingered instead of pulling away.

Mikoto's blue eyes widened in the shock of it all, then once the realization set in she closed them and allowed her hands to droop to her sides.

Ryuu pulled her even closer to him and deepened the kiss, snaking his hands up the back of her shirt.  Although inexperienced and awkward, Mikoto returned the kiss, moving her hands from her sides to around his neck.  His hot tongue moved across every inch of her mouth, almost in a teasing manner, and his right hand moved to her neck, almost as if holding her in place.

She felt lightheaded and the sensation of butterflies in her stomach was overwhelming.  Just when she thought that her knees would give out beneath her, Ryuu caught her and steadied her with his muscular arms.  It was then that both realized they were in desperate need of air.  Simultaneously they pulled away and began breathing heavily; trying to make up for the time they went without it.  Mikoto allowed herself to lean completely against his chest, damp with sweat, and he remained holding tightly onto her, his chin once again resting on the nape of her neck.   The tears started falling clumsily down her face once more when she realized that it would never last. 

Even if he did love her and they were together, even for a while, something would ultimately happen to break them apart, and she'd be left alone in the world once again.  Even so, she selfishly didn't want this moment to ever end.  She wished that they could stay there, suspended in time forever.

Her face buried into Ryuu's shoulder, she blindly reached up and tangled her fingers into his dark hair.  She gasped when she felt him biting her neck and lightly sucking on the skin.  "Hey, you'll leave a mark," she said quietly, still not bothering to move away.

She could just see the devious grin on Ryuu's face as he ignored her statement.  She shrugged her shoulder and he lifted his head, allowing his lips to finally part with her neck.  But, then, smiling deviously, he leaned back into her, lifted her chin with his thumb and crushed his mouth against hers again.  Calloused hands moved up and down the bare skin of her back under her shirt, before lodging themselves in the back pockets of her jeans, pulling her forward again.

Mikoto didn't know how long they had locked lips when suddenly, as abruptly as it all began, she pressed a hand to his chest and forcedly pushed him away. 

"What's wrong?" he asked breathlessly.

Mikoto, also trying to catch her breath, looked every which way.  She could have sworn she heard something, but whatever it was, it stopped. 

"I'm sorry," she heard Ryuu say softly.  She turned to see him holding a hand to his forehead and pushing back his brown hair.  His eyes were averted to the ground, almost as if he was afraid of making eye contact.  "I don't know what…  I am _so _sorry." 

Tentatively, she reached up and this time she kissed him to resume where they had left off. 

It wasn't until they heard someone clear their throat and say, "So, this is what you two have been up to," that they broke apart again. 

Kashiya stood not five feet off, smiling, hands resting at her hips.  Mikoto felt her face flush crimson and she buried her face into Ryuu's shoulder.  "We got worried when we saw Mikoto storm away from camp like that…" she said slowly, as if thinking carefully before saying anything.  "But, if this is what you were up to, then don't let me interrupt!" She held her hands up as if to show defeat, then she walked rather quickly back to camp.

Ryuu chuckled in his throat and pressed his forehead to hers.  "You ready to go back to camp?"

Mikoto gripped the fabric of his shirt tightly and shook her head, sobbing once again.  "What's wrong?" he asked, running his fingers through her blond hair.  Mikoto herself wasn't sure what was wrong, or whether the tears that poured out were due to happiness or sadness; emotions seemed so alien to her now.  "I'll be here in the morning," he reassured, still smiling. 

But that wasn't enough.  She wanted here; she wanted the time they had now. 

"Besides," he continued, still trying to catch his breath, "if that didn't set off your Trance, I'm not sure what would." 

She nodded, unsure of what to say and reluctantly let go of his shirt.  Ryuu slipped his hand into hers and led her back to the camp.

Instead of walking back to the campfire with Ryuu, she went ahead and stopped at her tent.  Ryuu wished her goodnight and walked off, and she changed into some pajamas, then lay down on top of her sleeping bag and stared up at the brown canvas of the tent.  Outside the only sounds were crickets serenading everyone to sleep, and the crackling of the fire. 

It wasn't long before Kashiya crawled into the tent, still smiling knowingly at Mikoto and saying nothing.  It was silent between the two for a while, then just as Mikoto was getting ready to fall asleep, Kashiya asked, "So, how was it?"

"What?"

"Your first kiss!  How was it?"

Mikoto wanted to curl into a ball and disappear.  How did Kashiya know it was her first?  Was it really that noticeable?  "I don't think…" the Genome said slowly, "words can do it justice."

She tried to shake all the jumbled-up thoughts from her head.  "We're leaving Ipsen's Castle tomorrow," she said, changing subjects.

"Are we going home so soon?"

"No, I don't have enough artifacts to call it quits.  What do you think of going to Madin Sari?"

"Madin Sari?!" Kashiya gasped, "I've always wanted to go there!"

Mikoto smiled to herself and rolled over so that her back was facing Kashiya.  She could tell that things were going to change, but for the better or for the worse, she wasn't sure.

The next morning when everyone woke up, surprisingly it was the twins who refused to get out of bed.  Kashiya sauntered out of their tent, throwing her arms up in defeat.  "They're not budging," she said.

Mikoto grumbled something incoherent and glanced at Seth's wristwatch.  She was hoping to leave before eight o'clock so that they could get to Madin Sari around midday. 

"Throw some water on them," Seth said around the filter of his cigarette.  Over the last few days he had been running low, so he tried limiting his nicotine intake.  He had a cigarette when he woke up, after every meal, and before he went to sleep.  Sometimes he'd have more depending on how annoying the twins were.

"No, don't!" Mikoto rolled her eyes.  "We don't want to waste what water we have."

"Hey, Seth, why don't you go wake them up?" Ryuu snickered.  "Do what you threatened to do to me."

Seth inhaled the last of his cigarette, then blowing the silver smoke from his nose, he threw it on the ground and smothered it beneath his boot.  Wide-eyed, Mikoto watched as Seth walked to the twins' tent, loading his handgun as he went.

From outside the tent, Mikoto, Kashiya and Ryuu heard Seth cry, "Rise n' shine!"   Then the sound of two gunshots were heard, and then the unmistakable sound of the twins screaming.  Mikoto covered her mouth in fear and ran to the tent and threw open the flaps.  Blaise and Blade were up and about, dressing at Seth's gunpoint.  There were two holes in the bare ground between their sleeping bags where Seth obviously shot his gun.

"Seth, don't do that again," she gasped, clutching her heart. 

"I won't," he said calmly.  "What a waste of ammo…"

Everyone picked up camp and loaded their belongings into the airship.  By the time they left Mikoto saw, much to her dislike, that it was almost an hour later than she had hoped. 

The flight from Ipsen's Castle to Madin Sari was long and tiring.  Needless to say, everyone was very happy to be on land again once they reached their destination.  Kashiya and Mikoto offered to set up the entire camp as the boys searched the ruins for as many artifacts they could find without disturbing the structure.

As they worked, Mikoto tried her best to teach Kashiya some simple curative magic.  Kashiya had a knack for it; magic must've been strong in her family when people still used it.

Once everything was up where it should be, Mikoto and Kashiya sat around the fire ring they had made and talked quietly amongst themselves and waited for the boys to return. 

"Do we _have _to wait for them?" Kashiya whined, looking longingly at the stone rubble.  "I want to go exploring!"

Mikoto chuckled and threw the stick she had been fumbling with on the ground.  "I'll go with you."

"Really?  Awesome!" Kashiya stood up and began walking toward the ruins.

Quickly grabbing her dagger, Mikoto ran to catch up. 

"They say the best time to be in the ruins is during sunset," Kashiya swooned.  "They say that it's the most romantic sight."

Mikoto thought for a moment and remembered Zidane once saying, 'Sunset in Madin Sari is something everyone wants to see, but the thing is you don't want to be there _after _sunset.'  To this day she still had no idea what he meant by that.

"You and Ryuu should go watch the sunset," Kashiya beamed, nudging Mikoto in the side.  "I know!  That's what we'll do.  I'll find you guys the perfect little spot to sit and watch it!" and with that, Kashiya took off running.

Mikoto's face burned red as she chased after her.  "Stop Kash, you don't have to tease me like that.  I don't even know what happened last night!"

"Isn't that what everyone says?" the older woman laughed, then came to a standstill so quickly that Mikoto almost ran directly into her back.  "Would you look at that…?" she muttered to herself.  Almost in a zombie-like manner she walked to the Eidolon Wall.

The two girls stepped into the circular stone room and Kashiya walked to the closest painting; the one of the thunder god, Ramuh.  She reached up with her thin fingers and traced the outlines of it, feeling the cool touch of stone against her fingertips. 

"This is…so neat.  The Summoners definitely had a unique lifestyle, wouldn't you say?  Look at all the paintings of the Eidolons!"

Mikoto smiled and leaned back against the stone wall.

"I don't suppose you know how to summon, do you?" Kashiya asked.

"No, only a certain group of people could call forth Eidolons.  My brother tried to summon without being a Summoner."

"Oh, was he able to?"

Mikoto chewed on her lip, "No.  It was one of the things that led to his death."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Kashiya said quietly, still looking at the paintings.

It was silent between the two, Kashiya looking at paintings and Mikoto just thinking when they heard someone yelling, "KASH!  MIKOTO!  WE NEED YOU GUYS!!"

The two girls looked at each other then bolted out through the stone doorway.  Immediately upon exiting, they saw Blade running toward them.  "It's Blaise, we're not sure what's wrong with him."

"Is he sick?" Kashiya asked.

"Yeah.  He collapsed while we were looking and it looked like he went into convulsions, then he started throwing up everywhere!  We got to camp and we were looking for something to give to him, but you haven't taken your medicines out yet."

"Yeah we did.  They're in the first aid tent!"

"No they're not.  We looked everywhere for them!"

"What!?"

Kashiya ran even faster toward the camp.  She could see Ryuu and Seth's silhouettes in the first aid tent as she drew closer to it.  When she got there, she threw open the flaps, pushing Ryuu out of the way.

Blaise was lying in the infirmary cot, shaking and sweating at the same time.  "Have you taken his temperature?"

"We told you, we couldn't find your stuff anywhere!" Blade yelled as he and Mikoto stumbled in as well.  Kashiya turned to the corner of the tent she normally kept her chests and saw that they weren't there.

"Mikoto, didn't we put my things in here?" she asked quickly.

"Yeah, I remember putting them right there!"

Kashiya held her hand to Blaise's forehead to find him burning up with fever, still he kept muttering 'so cold' to himself, over and over.  Flustered, Kashiya stood straight up and said, "Okay, here's how it goes.  Blade, Ryuu and Mikoto, I want you guys to look for my medicine and equipment.  Seth, bring me some more blankets."

Without asking questions, everyone did as they were told.  Blaise, still delirious looked wildly around the tent.  Kashiya sat down in a stool next to the bed and smoothed out his messy blond hair, grasping his hand.  "Shh, shh, calm down," she tried to soothe.

Seth arrived with more blankets and together, he and Kashiya packed Blaise in. 

"I don't understand how he's so cold.  It's hotter than a mother out there," Seth grumbled.

"I don't know, but I have an idea of what he has," Kashiya said quietly, sitting back down next to him and continuing to brush the blond hair from his face.  His eyes seemed so distant, almost like he was looking completely through them.

"It's not contagious, is it?" Seth asked.

"Not if it's what I think it is."  The white haired man looked sullenly between the two figures and finally squatted down next to Kashiya.  Outside the tent, the sound of the other three frantically searching for Kashiya's belongings could be faintly heard. 

Blaise began shaking even worse than before, and Kashiya felt powerless to stop him.  Then she had an idea; it should work temporarily, at least until they could find her medicines.  Still gripping Blaise's hand, she pressed it against his chest and her other hand against his forehead and quietly said, "Esuna."  He stopped shaking and closed his eyes. 

"Oh, no, did I do it wrong?" she panicked.  She pressed her ear to his chest, his heart was still beating and he was still breathing. 

"I think he's sleeping," Seth whispered.

Kashiya nodded and walked to the tent entrance.  Ryuu and Blade were on their way back carrying the huge chest of medicines, and Mikoto followed behind, dragging a smaller one.

"Where were they?" the medic asked happily.

"For some reason, they were in our tent," Ryuu said, carefully placing the huge chest on the ground.

"What were they doing in there?" Kashiya asked, taking the smaller chest from Mikoto.  She pulled out a syringe and drew some blood from Blaise's arm.  "Mikoto, set up my microscope," she instructed as she put a drop of the blood on a slide. 

Once the microscope was set up, she placed the slide under the lens.  After focusing for a long time she sat up and leaned back in her chair.  "I knew it," she muttered.

"What is it?" Blade asked. 

The others looked at her expectantly.  "Well, it's just a little ironic, don't you think?" she laughed half-heartedly, "he's got malaria."

"From the water?!" Blade exclaimed.

"No, not from the water!" she rolled her eyes.  "From a mosquito bite!"

"How bad is it?"

"I'm going to need more space to work, everyone out!" she shooed, pushing everyone from the tent. 

Taking a huge shuddering breath, she sat down at her stool and looked through her already made medicines, hoping she had one already mixed for viral sicknesses such as malaria.  She had no such luck.  "Dammit," she grumbled, pulling out a huge alchemist chart she brought from home.

She ran her finger down a column until she found 'malaria' written in italic letters.  Next she ran her finger over, finally finding the ratios of ingredients she needed.  Shakily, she pulled the herbs out and started to crush them with a stone inside a bowl.

In the cot, Blaise rolled and moaned in his sleep.  Once the herbs had been reduced to a fine powder, she grabbed a potion bottle and emptied the powder into it, corked it, and shook it until the herbs were dissolved into the pink tinted liquid.  She fed the medicine to him through her own mouth as she had done with Seth previously.

Now all she could do was wait and hope that he came out of it. 

Hours passed, and Blaise did little but sleep.  When he was awake, he was delirious and when he talked he made no sense. 

Seth reentered the tent, carrying a lantern to find Kashiya still sitting with Blaise, whispering things to him, as if hoping against all hope that he could hear her.   He quietly placed the lantern on the table and walked behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. 

The action startled her and when she looked back to see Seth, she shook her head.  "Not now."

"How's he doing?" he whispered.

"Hasn't woken up in more than," she checked her watch, "Two hours."

"You need a break.  Come on, the sun's getting ready to set."

"Who'll watch him?"

Seth sighed and stood back up.  "He's been asleep for two hours, what makes you think he'll wake up in the next thirty minutes?"

"I'd feel bad if he did," she answered, voice barely audible.

"You need to get some fresh air," Seth said, pulling on her arm, trying to get her to stand.  She yanked her arm away. 

"Sorry, I need to stay here."

She felt his eyes boring holes into the back of her head, so with an exasperated sigh, she stood up and walked to the entrance of the tent, leaned against a pole that was holding it up, and crossed her arms.  He walked up behind her and placed his arms over hers, pulling her back into him.  "We'll watch it from here then."

"Seth…" she mumbled, but stopped herself.  Is this not what she had wanted for the last few weeks?  She leaned her head back against his arm and breathed in his scent, a mixture of cologne, dirt and sweat. 

Past the tent flaps, in the distance, the sun was glowing a dangerous shade of crimson in the auburn sky.  Slowly, it sunk lower and lower until it just barely touched the top of the Madin Sari structure.  Then, all of the red rock that made up the ruins began to glow the same red as the sun. 

Kashiya almost fell forward, Seth too.  Everything looked like it was on fire.  Burning eternally a brilliant red.  It was just as beautiful as it was eerie. 

"I bet it's a curse," Kashiya murmured.

"Hm?"

"Madin Sari was destroyed by fire, wasn't it?  I'll bet one of the village elders cursed the ruins so that everyone could see the sight of Madin Sari burning."

She felt a chill run up her spine and Seth tightened his grip around her. 

"I wonder if Mikoto and Ryuu are watching?" she pondered aloud.

"They are.  I saw them leave with Blade a while ago," he said.  "I say we have about fifteen minutes to ourselves," he smiled deviously.  He took her by the wrists and turned her to look at him.

"What has gotten into you, I'd like to know…" Kashiya chuckled embarrassedly, averting her eyes to the ground.  He removed his sunglasses and lifted her chin, his piercingly green eyes staring into her one visible amethyst eye. 

"A couple of shots," he answered.  He was so close to her now that she had no doubt this was the case.  The smell of alcohol was still noticeable behind the strong smell of the mint gum he was chewing on.  Because of his nicotine shortage, he was drinking more so that he wouldn't notice his cravings as much, even though Mikoto was constantly hiding the alcohol from him.

"Where'd you find them?" she laughed.

His voice got softer as he leaned in closer, "It's a secret."

 Mikoto sat between Ryuu and Blade on a giant rock.  Even after the sun had set, she remained sitting there, staring blankly at the ruins.  That had been the most beautiful and terrifying sight she had ever seen.  She was only vaguely aware of the arm around her waist, and the voice saying something in her ear.

She was pulled out of her daze by Blade pinching her in the shoulder.  Covering the sore spot on her arm, she glanced at him and very plainly said, "What?"

"We need to get back to camp," he exclaimed.  He seemed to be much more fidgety than normal.  "No one's built a fire yet and it's going to be dark really soon."  Without saying any more, he leapt down from the rock, grabbed the lantern and started running back for camp.

"He's worried about Blaise," Ryuu said shortly.

"It's understandable," Mikoto responded quietly. 

When they got back to the fire ring, Ryuu let go of his grip of Mikoto.  "I'm going to get something to start the fire with," he announced.

Blade walked over to the infirmary tent and opened the flap.  "Out," Mikoto could hear Kashiya's voice.  "I'll let you know when he's awake again, I just gave him some more medicine."

"What about Seth?" he whined.

"He's helping me.  Out." 

Blade stumbled out of the tent looking very distraught.  He glanced back at Mikoto then grumbled something about going to the bathroom. 

The Genome looked down at the fire ring.  Several logs had been thrown down in the center of the ring very haphazardly.  Sighing, she bent down and began to stack them in a more orderly fashion. 

A gust of cold wind blew.  Mikoto rubbed up and down her arms, trying to keep warm, but she knew that if they didn't get the fire started soon it would only get worse.  Deciding against waiting for Ryuu to get back, she mumbled a fire spell and watched as the logs quickly caught and the fire crackled to life.

Inside the infirmary tent, Kashiya was once again sitting in the stool beside Blaise's bed.  Seth stood not too far away, fumbling around in his pocket.  He was down to his last cigarette and as much as he wanted it now, he was trying to save it.

With a great yawn, Kashiya leaned her head against the cot. 

"Go on to bed," she heard Seth say.  "Or at least let me bring in your stuff so that you can sleep in here."

"I'm not tired," she lied, even though she could feel her eyes closing. 

Then, just as she was getting ready to let her eyes close, she saw the lantern on the table teeter ever so slightly.  She sat up and watched it more carefully only to see it fall completely over and roll off the table before going out completely.

Kashiya gasped and covered her mouth with her hand.  However, Seth merely dismissed it, saying, "The wind must be picking up."

Trembling from head to toe, Kashiya managed to finally stutter out, "Seth, can you get us a new lantern?"

He grunted in response and then bent down to pick up the broken lantern.  As he walked out of the door, she heard him mumbling, "Probably ran out of oil…"

Kashiya's heart was racing.  How could the wind have just 'picked up' when they were sitting inside of a tent?

Whistling to himself, Blade strolled over to a nearby forest, swinging a lantern to the side of him as he walked.  His mind was in about a million different places.  Blaise was extremely ill, Madin Sari gave him the creeps, not to mention, he couldn't get that eerie image of the sunset out of his head.  Shaking all these thoughts from his head, he set the lantern down next to his leg, unzipped his pants and began to relieve himself.

It was then he heard something move in the bushes in front of him.  He squinted his eyes and looked harder.  He shrugged it away, but then he heard it again.  His eyes bolted open and this time he saw what it was. 

A strange squealing sound came from his throat that might've been a scream.  But before he could see anymore, he quickly pulled up his pants and ran back to camp, waving the lantern wildly over his head.

"What's wrong with you?" Seth asked grumpily, looking up from the lantern he was trying to fix.

Mikoto and Ryuu looked at him confusedly too. 

The blond was doubled over, trying to catch his breath.  One of his arms was pointed back to the woods, and he was stuttering like never before, "G-G-G…"

"What is it?" Mikoto asked worriedly.

"G-G…Ghost!" he finally managed.

"What?  Don't tell me you believe in that supernatural crap," Seth rolled his eyes, but Kashiya had already run out of the tent. 

"You saw one?" she asked wildly.  Blade nodded, his green eyes still wide in fear.  "Where was it?"

He pointed back to the woods again.

Kashiya mumbled something, then ran back inside the infirmary tent. 

"What did it look like?" Mikoto asked.

"Oh, Mik…not you too…" Seth grumbled. 

"It wa…It was…a woman, with a horn…she…" he shook his head and clenched his eyes shut, as if he didn't want to recall it, "she didn't have any arms…"

Mikoto gasped and put her hand over her heart, looking back at the woods. 

"You're joking, right?" Ryuu asked, his mouth hanging open.

"You're all nuts," Seth said, shaking his head.  He relit the lantern and turned the knob to make sure it was working again.  When he saw that it was, he took it back to the first aid tent, then went to bed in his own tent.

Blade, Mikoto and Ryuu looked nervously between each other, and timidly sat down around the fire.  It was almost completely black outside.  Not even the stars or moons were shining to provide them with any light.

Blade, already more jumpy than normal, seemed paranoid beyond belief.  He was constantly looking around him, as if always afraid someone was standing over his shoulder.

Mikoto was poking at the fire boringly, her chin resting in her spare hand, when she felt Ryuu nudge her.  She looked up and what she saw terrified her.  The spirits of men, women and children alike were running around the ruins.  Cries of anguish, sorrow and pain echoed off of the stony walls. 

Blade made another squealing noise and ran into the infirmary tent at the same time that Kashiya bolted out.  Her amethyst eye widened in terror and she zipped across the camp, running into Seth's tent. 

"What?" they heard his monotonous voice ask.

"Do you believe in ghosts?" Kashiya asked, almost too fast to catch.

"I think it's all a bunch of…" but Kashiya had already dragged him from the tent, and he was already seeing it first hand.  He fumbled in his pocket for his last cigarette and shakily brought it to his mouth.

"What the hell is this?" he asked from around the cigarette, struggling to light it.

Mikoto stood up and as if being pulled by a magnet, walked for the village to get a better look, "It's the destruction…" she muttered.

"Get back here!" Seth yelled at her.  She paid him no heed and walked closer before stopping at the entrance of the ruins.  

"Ms. Tribal!" she heard Ryuu call behind her.  Fast footsteps followed her and she felt arms wrap around her, pulling her back, yet she fought back to hold her ground.

Overhead, a giant eyeball protruded from behind clouds and blinked.  She heard Ryuu gasp and felt his heartbeat grow faster, still he held tightly onto her to prevent her from venturing any deeper into the village.

Within the giant eyeball's red iris, she could see the reflection of the village burning.  Screams of fleeing villagers surrounded them.  A man carrying a child, frantic with fear, ran right through them, sending a chill up their spine so shocking Mikoto went limp and Ryuu almost fell. 

Two funnels of tornadoes stretched down from the sky and hit the village at the same time. 

"It's a curse!" Kashiya yelled.  "I'm sure of it!  This entire village is cursed!  Mikoto!  We need to get out of here!"

"We don't have enough artifacts," Mikoto argued.

"Mikoto!  Get back!" Seth yelled again, and again she ignored him.  "Ryuu!  Bring her back!"

She felt Ryuu grab her around the waist and lift her legs up so that he held her in a cradle.  He carried her back to camp, and stood next to Kashiya and Seth.  All four watched the terrorizing scene of Madin Sari's destruction with wide eyes, Ryuu still holding her.

Then, as suddenly as it began, it stopped as if someone pressed some sort of button.  The surroundings were once again eerily silent.  Seth looked at his watch, then back at Kashiya, "Midnight," he breathed, "Exactly."

Shaking all over, Kashiya walked to the infirmary tent and opened it up.  Blade had been watching the scene unfold from between the tent flaps.  "Is it over?" he asked, worriedly.

"We think so," she said quietly.  "How's your brother?  Did he wake up?"

"You'll never believe this…" Blade said quietly.

"What?" she asked, turning to look at him.  When he didn't say anything, she looked at Blaise, his eyes were wide open and he was looking wildly around.

"What's going on?" he asked, panic-stricken.

"Settle down!" Kashiya exclaimed, trying to press him back against the mattress, but he fought against her.  She felt his forehead; his fever was gone. 

"He's…he's cured!" she said breathlessly.  She turned around to look at Blade so fast her hair whipped her in the face, "What happened?"

As if to answer her question, she saw a silver man dissolve into the canvas of the tent, smiling.  She backed up against the table, causing it to fall with her.  "What…what th-"

"He said he was the village witch doctor…" Blade said, his voice also faltering with fear and confusion.

Kashiya swallowed several times, even though her mouth felt dry.  She blinked a few times at the spot where the man had vanished.

"He also said, he was sorry about your potions."

Covering her heart with her hand, she scrambled back to her feet.  She was sure that her heart stopped beating for a few seconds, but disregarded it and stumbled out of the tent.  "It's a miracle!" she screamed, "he was cured!"  Mikoto and Ryuu were the only ones still standing outside.  Both turned slowly toward her.

"What?" Ryuu asked.

"Blaise!  He's cured!"

The two went running to see for themselves.  Sure enough, Blaise was sitting up in bed, holding his head.  Seth also came running in.

"What happened?" he asked, wishing he hadn't smoked his last cigarette.

"The village doctor paid him a visit," Kashiya smiled.

Everyone in the room stared at her in utter confusion for a few moments.  Then, unanimously, it seemed as if their jaws dropped.  "No way…" Ryuu muttered.

"O-Okay…" Mikoto stammered, "Kashiya, I agree with you.  We're leaving for Lindblum first thing tomorrow morning."

To be continued….

**A/N: **Surprise everyone!  It's a quick update!  I figured you'd all enjoy this, rather than waiting forever and a day for me to update, like usual.  But, I actually got this one written fairly quickly, at one o'clock in the morning may I add…and only the ghosties that live in my house to accompany me.  Yes, I was frightened. 


	10. Save Me

**Robshi: **The moogles aren't in Madin Sari anymore because they left for Lindblum in WWTLF, remember? Zidane took them back so they could be with Eiko. And the reason no one else witnessed it was because the Summoner race hadn't completely died yet. Eiko was still remaining. Those are my excuses for this chapter. o

Chapter 10

Mikoto watched with sad eyes as everyone got off of the airship, laden down with their belongings and turning their excited eyes to their loved ones awaiting their arrival. Blaise and Blade immediately jumped off of the boarding ramp and tackled their mother in a giant hug along with their little sister. Kashiya and Seth had started off together, Mikoto was unsure where. This time it struck her much harder than all the other times that the possibility of her seeing them again was slim.

Even though Kashiya supplied her with her address, as did the twins and Ryuu, Mikoto never kept contact with her employees if she could help it. It was entirely too awkward seeing them again after an absence of a few years and them declaring several times, "You look exactly like someone I met five years ago…"

What hurt the most was knowing she'd probably never see Ryuu again.

It hurt even more knowing it was her own selfishness that prevented her from seeing him again. He wanted a relationship, and she did too. However, she did not want him to know the truth about her past. What he heard was a very condensed and sweetened up version of her life. She didn't want to risk him finding everything out.

She didn't want to risk him accepting it.

She didn't want to risk falling even more in love and being completely and ruthlessly torn away from him one day, like Zidane had been with Dagger.

Deep down inside, she knew that she wouldn't be able to handle it. She didn't want to feel the pain of losing another loved one, so why should she set herself up for it? Then again, the feeling she got from just being around him compensated for all of the reasons why she should stay away from him.

She watched ruefully as Ryuu walked away with his mother, a feeble looking woman. His knapsack swung casually over his shoulder, his arm around his mother's shoulders, and from all that way she could hear his laughter. She wanted so badly to follow him.

Yet, she stopped herself and instead turned around to saunter up the boarding ramp of the airship. Her mind was in another place entirely. She was too distracted to notice the men trailing her until it was too late. She felt something very hard come in contact with the back of her head.

The next thing she knew, she was on her back, looking through blurry eyes at two indistinguishable faces.

"A sorceress? This youngin'?" one man asked the other.

"I'm tellin' you, she's the one! She cast a fireball from the palm of her hand and caught one of the shipping barrels on fire!"

Her head felt like it was being split open, which made her wonder what they had hit her with. Just as the pain was beginning to subside and the familiar warm healing sensation was just starting to take over, she felt her body being lifted from the ground, and swung over someone's shoulder.

"We're taking her to the center square, you know what we do with the likes of them…" one of the men scoffed.

"An army of sorcerers once destroyed Lindblum!" a different voice called out in front of them. "We won't let that happen again! We'll kill all who have the power to do so!"

The last statement hit her harder than any object they could have thrown at her. Desperately she lifted her head and struggled to break the man's grasp. "Let me go!" she cried, banging her fists as hard as she could against his back. When she saw that this didn't seem to affect him, she began kicking her feet as well.

"She's a feisty one," a man chuckled. He grabbed her legs and held them in such a fashion that she could no longer use them.

"If you don't stop it…" she warned quietly.

"You'll what?" another man cooed. He stepped behind the man carrying her so that he could look her directly in the face. "In a pickle now, aren'tcha? Can't use magic because it'll only prove your guilt!" He laughed, exposing the gaps in his mouth where some of his teeth were missing.

Mikoto scrunched up her nose to grimace at him, then spat in his face. He angrily wiped the moisture from his cheek, then reached forward to pull down on a lock of her blond hair very forcefully. She screeched in pain and watched as his face drew closer to her, so close in fact that she could smell the liquor heavy on his breath. "I'd not do that if I were you…" he warned venomously.

In an effort to grab her dagger, still sitting at her waist, she reached behind her, but the man carrying her caught her hand. "She has a weapon!" he announced loudly. "Take it from her!"

Mikoto struggled even more, trying to get away, but was restrained by the men. One took her weapon from its sheath and examined it. "Quite a knife you have here…" he said, smiling evilly. The man restraining her laughed and pushed her at the man with the knife. He caught her arms and wrapped them around her back, putting his face on the nape of her neck. "A very nice knife indeed…it would be a shame if it were to pierce your beautiful neck…" With a flick of his wrist, he held the blade dangerously close to her throat.

"You disgust me…" she seethed, keeping her eyes fixated on the blade. If he _did _manage to cut her throat, there would be no telling what would happen.

"Your kind disgusts me," he said quietly. "But if you'll walk with me, I promise, nothing will happen to you until you reach the square…"

"As…tempting as that sounds…" she struggled to talk as she was being forced down the road, "I'm afraid I'll have to refuse…"

She conjured a fireball into one of her hands being held behind her back, and she heard the man holding her shriek. His grip loosened and she ran for an alleyway, but one of the men blocked her path and very easily picked her up.

"The little bitch tried to burn me!" the man cried, waving Mikoto's dagger over his head. "Hurry and get her to the square! The faster we get her there, the sooner we don't have to deal with her!"

The man grunted in response and carried her, paying special attention to her hands. The square was coming into view just ahead and now Mikoto saw what they had in mind for her. A single stake was in the middle of a platform, surrounded by hay bails. Many people stood around as if awaiting for her arrival.

"We've had this waiting for your return, sweetie…" the toothless man smiled. "Think of it as a welcome back gift."

"Burn in hell!" she yelled, tightening her hands into fists.

"Who's going to burn in hell? Me? Or a witch?"

She felt her feet hit ground again and she would have made another dash for it had not so many people held her down. One man pressed her back to the stake while two others worked to tie her there with a rope.

A man carrying a torch and her dagger yelled out above all the commotion in the crowd, "Citizens of Lindblum! Many years ago, our hometown was destroyed by an army of mages who used magic to burn, destroy and kill. This woman here has the same abilities as these soldiers had. Will we allow our beloved hometown to be destroyed anew by her kind?" He emphasized his last statement by throwing her dagger at her feet, its blade stuck in the wood and its hilt tilted just out of reach.

A shout of "No!" echoed through the streets.

"Let her death be a warning to all others who have these powers to stay away from our town!"

The crowd cheered and Mikoto was powerless to move. In the crowd she saw men, as well as women, even children, all sneering at her as if daring her to break free. With a sneer, the man threw the torch down at the bails of hay, which immediately flickered to life.

The smell of smoke slowly wafted up to her nose and she felt sick. Her legs felt hot and she felt the flames from the fire lick her bare arms. With all her might, she tried to bend in a way to pick up the dagger, sticking teasingly out of the wood, but no matter how she tried, she was unable to grasp it.

Panting from the effort, she cast a water spell at one of the hay bails. It was not enough to put out the fire though. Already it had spread all around her. The heat was overwhelming and coming from all directions. She felt lightheaded and knew that using her magic wasn't helping her at all, if anything it was making the situation much worse.

She felt the fire eat away at her skin and clothing, and the smell of burning flesh wafted to her nose, making her want to vomit. She felt the pain of burning alive, but she wouldn't be so lucky as for it to just end, she knew very well that she would have to endure the pain until there was some sort of escape.

Her head slowly drooped. All her strength had left her, and she was completely out of ideas. Now her only hope was to endure the feeling of burning until the ropes around her gave away.

She squinted her eyes and turned her head to the side. She wished that the mob had chosen some other form of execution for her. Something that was not as long and painful at least.

Just when she thought she wouldn't be able to handle anymore, she heard a series of loud shots from the audience. Several stunned citizens turned their gazes to the back of the square. Even Mikoto lifted her head and strained her eyes until she could see Seth, holding his hand gun over his head, chewing angrily on his cigarette.

"Let her go!" he yelled, just loud enough for her hear.

"Are you in league with her?" one of the men shot back at him.

"You _don't _want to get on my bad side!" Seth warned loudly. He reloaded his gun and aimed it over his head to send another shot into the air.

The man turned and glared at Mikoto, who still grimacing in pain. "Restrain him!" he yelled to several of his cronies. A gang of men ran from their posts around the platform to where Seth was standing.

She saw him being dragged away.

"Is there anyone else who wishes to speak out against this?!" the man called out over the audience.

"Yeah! We have something to say about it!" Blaise and Blade declared. She saw the two familiar faces pushing their way through the audience, swords brandished, looking just as angry as Seth.

"Get the twins!" the man yelled at the last of the men standing around.

As weak as she felt, she continued to struggle, hoping to find a weak spot in the ropes. She cried out in pain and agitation when she was still unable to break free. Suddenly, she saw a familiar face run up onto the platform and roll into the flames. He wrenched the dagger free and cut the ropes tying her to the stake, then picking her up in a cradle, ran off down the stairs.

"Get him! Get the brunette!" the man called desperately, chasing after him.

Though her vision was blurred, she knew it was Ryuu. She wasn't sure how he managed to run through the crowd without being stopped.

Ryuu quickly turned a corner into an alley, pressing his body against hers to shield her from view as a mob of people ran past. Once the last person had gone by, Ryuu collapsed in front of her from exhaustion. Mikoto, also extremely tired, fell next to him only to realize that he had severely burned himself on her dagger when he cut her free. Though her hands were still bound by a very thick rope, she placed them on his chest and used the last of her energy on a 'Curaga' spell, then collapsed, unconscious, next to him.

Two yellow eyes with slits for pupils were peering at her when she awoke. The sheer sight of the feline appearing eyes glaring at her was shocking enough, not to mention the fact that they were within inches of her face. She gasped and almost fell off of the couch she had apparently been sleeping on.

With a devious and playful grin, the eyes pulled away and their owner leaned back in a chair. Black hair with vibrant red streaks fell in front of heavily made up eyes. Mikoto scrambled up from laying down, pulling the blankets around her and stared at the strange woman staring back at her.

"Where am I?" she asked, desperately looking around.

"In my house," the stranger said, still looking very amused, then turning her head to the side, yelled, "Hey! Ma! She's awake!" Her voice was very hoarse, and a lot different than what Mikoto would have thought originally.

Still grinning from ear to ear, she leaned in and motioned Mikoto closer. "So, I hear my brother has the hots for you…"

"…Your…brother…knows me…?"

Now confused, Mikoto looked around the strange living room. Finally a woman bustled in who looked very familiar. Ryuu had left with her when the Red Rose landed back in Lindblum. "I can't believe that mob. Getting a hold of a helpless little girl…" she was saying to herself when she came into the room, carrying a tray with soup on it. "Eat up," she said simply, depositing it on the table in front of Mikoto.

Suddenly, Mikoto remembered everything and shot up from the couch extremely fast. "Ryuu's your brother!? Where is he? Is he alright?"

"He'll be fine…" the cat-eyed stranger sitting in front of her reassured. "He's sleeping upstairs. It was you that we were really worried about." She delicately brushed her fingers over the blankets straightening them out, showing off her black fingernails and many rings.

"Kai, leave her alone," Ryuu's mother said, quickly picking some old magazines up off of the table.

"I haven't done anything to her!" the woman in front of Mikoto half whined, her voice cracking.

"Go get changed, you look ridiculous," the mother said, shaking her head.

The stranger grumbled something incoherent, then stood up with an air of grace, and walked up the stairs. Mikoto watched her for a few moments, then snapped her gaze back to Ryuu's mother.

"Is Ryuu alright? Can I see him?"

"I don't know if he's awake yet, but he's upstairs…"

"Which room is his?" she asked quickly.

"Kai!" Ryuu's mother called after the retreating woman going up the stairs, "Show her your brother's room!"

Desperately, she ran up the stairs after Kai. She pointed her to a room at the end of the hall, and without hesitation, she ran to it and threw the door open. Sure enough Ryuu lay in bed, sleeping a restless sleep. No sheets were on him, and his shirt was removed. Several red burns were spread across his bare chest, and his hand was still a bright red from him grabbing the hot metal dagger. Even more to her horror, it looked infected.

Mikoto sighed and pulled a chair up next to his bed. She suddenly knew what Kashiya felt like whenever she had to deal with someone's grievous injuries. Terrible guilt, and fear about not being able to succeed in healing it.

She reached forward and gingerly brushed a dark strand of bangs from his forehead, only to see his eyes slowly open. "I'm really sorry…" she whispered, looking at him with sad eyes. "I didn't mean for you to get involved."

Suddenly, his eyes grew wider and he tried to sit up, only to wince in pain. "Mikoto! You're all right! I thought you were a goner!" he said quickly.

She shushed him and pressed him back against the mattress, "I'm fine, it's you that I'm worried about. You didn't need to come and get me. Now you're hurt."

"I wasn't about to let them burn you alive!" he said loudly, protesting against her hand that still held him against the bed.

"You just don't understand the complexity of it…" she said quietly.

She sat on the side of the bed and took his burned hand in hers only to find that it felt scalding hot against her cool skin. She saw him wince at the action. She smiled at him reassuringly and laced her fingers around his, "Curaga," she said smoothly, letting the words fall from her lips like water.

She felt herself shiver as a cooling sensation spread down her arms and transported itself into Ryuu. A blue aura swirled around their joined hands before winding its way up to settle into his chest. The burns seemed to automatically fade into his tan skin, and she felt the heat in his hand vanish as well.

But, after the feeling of victory, she felt lightheaded; she needed to stop using her magic so often. She was out of practice with it and she never carried her Ethers around with her anymore. Mikoto tried to shake the dizzying feeling from her head, but it wasn't working.

"Are you okay?!" he asked worriedly, sitting up. He tried to steady her only for her to slump completely backwards into.

"Just dizzy…that's all…" she replied, sleepily.

"You're amazing, you know that?" he chuckled, resting his chin on the top of her head.

She sighed, breathing in his scent. "I'm just happy you're all right. I was worried about you. You really shouldn't have gotten involved." She felt the tears sting her eyes. If he hadn't gotten involved it would have been so much easier for her leave him and Lindblum behind. Yet, everything he did seemed to draw her even closer to him, and she was afraid by this point, there'd be no way she could turn back.

"Don't be stupid. If someone hadn't gotten you, you would've died."

She couldn't say anything. Not that it mattered. Words would only have ruined the moment between them. She finally let go of his hand and studied it, making sure the burn was gone completely. Sure enough, there was not even a trace of the burn that had previously been there.

She smiled in satisfaction and leaned up against him, nuzzling her head into his shoulder.

"Sorry to bother you two," Kai's hoarse voice said teasingly, "But mom wants to talk to you. And Ryuu, where _did _your shirt go?" she snickered.

Ryuu turned his head to look at the intruder and rolled his eyes, "Tell her I'll be down in a minute."

Kai nodded with that trademark smirk and shut the door again.

"By the way, I didn't know you had a sister. She's beautiful. You never mentioned her come to think of it…"

"That's because I don't have a sister…" he muttered. "That's my brother."

She laughed and quickly covered her mouth, "Oh, I guess that's why you didn't mention 'her'."

"Yeah, he just got back from doing a show, where he played the female part. That's why he's got all the make up on, the contacts too," Ryuu stated, casually reaching around her to grasp his wristwatch lying on the bedside table. "He switches his contacts out every day, always a new color or style. He's nuts."

Mikoto stood up followed by Ryuu. Before leaving the room, he quickly grabbed a tee shirt and pulled it over his head to prevent further questions from being asked.

"I thought his voice sounded a little too strange to be female…" Mikoto mused aloud as they walked down the stairs.

"He's losing his voice again," Ryuu's mother stated, bustling into the room and shaking her head. "I tell him he needs to drink warm liquids, it's good on the throat, but he doesn't listen to me."

"I don't drink warm beverages, ma," Kai yelled from upstairs.

"Stop yelling!" she hollered back at him, "It'll only make it worse!"

"Whatever…" Kai said, then she heard a door close, soon followed by loud music.

"Would you turn that racket down!? I can't hear myself think!!"

Ryuu blushed slightly, "…That's my family…" he said softly, then he glanced back up at his mother. "So what'd you need us for?"

His mother turned around from the staircase where she had been yelling at Kai, and walked over to Ryuu and lifted his shirt up. "How're those burns, baby?" she asked.

"C'mon, ma!" he protested, pulling his shirt back down. "They're gone."

"Gone? How did they just disappear?"

"I'll tell you later," he said uneasily. "Now, ma, what'd you want us for?"

Ryuu's mother smiled brightly, and turned around so that she was looking directly at Mikoto. With a very friendly smile, she asked, "What are you planning on doing now?"

"What?" Mikoto asked awkwardly.

"What are you planning on doing now?" a man repeated, wheeling into the room in his wheelchair. "You can't go back out there! Those maniacs are probably still looking for you."

"I…I don't…" she stuttered, looking around nervously.

The man reached up and rubbed a hand over his beard as he thought.

"Can't she just stay here?" Ryuu asked, cupping a hand onto Mikoto's shoulder.

"How many people saw you run off with her?" his father answered sternly, "Think boy! At least one of them knows where you live. This'll be the first place they check for her!"

Ryuu muttered something and averted his eyes to the ground. His father stared at him angrily, then looked back at his wife.

"How will we get her out of here without anyone seeing?" Ryuu's mother asked, wringing a dishcloth in her hands.

Before anyone could offer an idea, someone knocked on the door.

Ryuu gasped.

"Get her out of here!" his father bellowed, wheeling over to the door.

Ryuu grabbed Mikoto by the shoulders and steered her around. "Come on!"

Not sure of where he was leading her, she ran after him up the flight of stairs in his house. He threw open a door and motioned her inside. She was pretty sure she was now standing in his parents' bedroom.

"Get in the closet, hurry! Hide under something!"

She didn't run in the closet so much as Ryuu shoved her in. Desperately she fumbled around in the darkness trying to find something to hide under.

Ryuu slammed the door shut and pressed his back against it when he heard someone call from down stairs, "False alarm! She's safe to come back down."

With a sigh of relief, he slid down the rough wood of the door and laughed half-heartedly to himself. Still breathing fast from the run up the stairs, he opened the door and flipped the lights on.

"Sorry, about that. I panicked."

Mikoto stumbled out and tentatively walked out of the room.

"Who's here?" Ryuu asked loudly as he walked ahead of her down the stairs.

"Mikoto!" a familiar face exclaimed. Before the Genome knew it, she had been pulled into a tight embrace. "Oh, that was a close one!"

"Kashiya, don't hug her so tight! She was damn near burnt alive!" Seth's familiar voice said. Seth was standing in the doorway, sporting a black eye and a cut lip, apparently from the mob earlier.

Kashiya gasped and pulled away quickly to study her.

Not a scratch. Not a single burn was visible on her pale skin.

Kashiya stumbled back a few paces and covered her mouth with her hand, "But…how did? You were…you were tied up! We all saw it! We saw the burns! We saw you bleeding!"

Mikoto smiled sadly and looked at the carpeted floor.

"Was it your magic?" Kashiya murmured.

Magic! That was it! It was the perfect excuse. After all, her magic had spared Ryuu, hadn't it? "Yes, I used some curative spells after Ryuu saved me," she said quietly.

Ryuu's father's eyes grew wide. "So you're saying that she _can _use magic?" His face turned purple, "This is an outrage! We take her in only to find that she's guilty of the crimes the mob accused her of!?"

Ryuu's mother's eyes grew even bigger and she whispered, "That's why the burns are gone…" Turning quickly to face her husband, she put a hand to his arm hoping to comfort him. "Jei, Jei, sweetie…" she said soothingly.

"I want her out! She can't stay here! She's endangering the life of my family; I won't have it!" he yelled, pointing an accusing finger at her.

"But Dad! She did it to save me! I'm alive because she used her magic!"

"I don't care. I want her out!"

"Then I'll leave," she said quietly. She turned away from the group only to be stopped by Ryuu.

"No, Mikoto!" he turned around and wrapped his fingers around her wrist, restraining her from going any farther.

"I'll be fine on my own," she muttered, facing away from him, her eyes shut tight, refusing to allow the tears collecting in the corners to spew out.

"But…" he started, yet she only yanked her arm away and began out the door.

"Mikoto!" Kashiya exclaimed as the Genome made her way to the door, "You can stay with me! My apartment is in the Industrial district; it's not the nicest place but I have room." There was an awkward pause between everyone.

Ryuu's father was still seething, and it was difficult to decipher what his mother was thinking. Seth, Ryuu and Kashiya all stared at her looking apprehensive and worried.

"No, I don't want to trouble anyone."

"It's _no _trouble!"

"Please, Mikoto, don't put yourself in any more danger by going somewhere alone…" Seth said softly.

Still staring at the door, Mikoto chewed on her lip.

"Come on, you can lay low at my place until everything clears up…" Kashiya offered again. "We'll think of a way to get you there and everything, just please, don't go commit suicide by walking out there alone."

_Hmph…suicide…_Mikoto thought bitterly.

"Ryuu, do you have any cloaks? Anything that would cover her up without making her seem too suspicious?" Seth asked.

"I'm sure we can find something…" his mother said brightly.

"Niya, don't encourage them…" his father muttered.

"It's because of this young lady that Ryuu is alive, you should at least help her to have safe passage to somewhere else."

Jei stared daggers at her, then wheeled back out of the room.

"Any ideas?" Ryuu asked, looking expectantly at everyone else left in the room.

"Maybe you should go ask your brother if he has anything," his mother said thoughtfully. "He does have an extensive wardrobe…"

From the look on Ryuu's face, Mikoto could gather that he would probably have rather eaten oglops than ask Kai for clothes for Mikoto to borrow. His face looked similar to someone who had just sucked on a lemon, yet he grabbed Mikoto's wrist and pulled her up the stairs behind him. Kashiya and Seth glanced at each other, then followed.

"Kai! Kai, open up!" Ryuu yelled, banging his fist against the closed door. "We need your help!"

The loud music was turned off, Mikoto heard as someone slowly and calmly walked across the room. The door opened slightly and Kai's familiar face poked out, an impish smile spread across his face.

"Yes, dear brother, what can I help you with?"

Ryuu glared at him and pulled Mikoto into sight. "She needs a disguise."

Now Kai completely opened up his door. He leaned against the doorframe momentarily and put a thin finger to his mouth as he thought. "Okay, I'll do it."

This time, Kai leaned forward and grabbed her wrist, leading her into his room.

Black and red were the main colors, and they were everywhere. Strange and slightly creepy trinkets adorned the unused spaces, and candles made up most of the light source of the room. "Sit here," he instructed, motioning to a chair. He stared at her a little longer before walking slowly to his closet and searching through his clothes, throwing around everything he didn't approve of or need.

"Aha! Here it is!"

She looked up just in time to see several articles of clothing flying at her face. "Hurry up and put it on. The bathroom is right there."

It was about thirty minutes later when Kai's bedroom door opened again. Out stepped a very proud looking Kai, smiling from ear to ear. "Ladies and gentleman," he announced, waving a hand gracefully at the door, "I am proud to present to you…" he furrowed his eyebrows and poked his head back inside the door, "What's your name, sweetie?"

"Mikoto…" she answered quietly.

"Aw, that's not good enough for this look. I'm proud to present to you…Miko!" Kai held his hands in a fashion to state that she was on her way out, but when she didn't come, he poked his head back into his room. "Aren't you coming out?" he laughed.

"I feel strange."

"But you look awesome!"

"Come on out, Mik!" Kashiya called.

Very slowly, she walked out of his room, and either out of amusement or pity, Kashiya giggled. Mikoto wore a pair of very baggy and torn pants, underneath a pair of fishnet panty hose. The shirt she had on was a tank top with a gothic appearing cross in the center. Kai had gone overboard and put very thick makeup on her and had also gone crazy with the hairspray.

"Is that really you?" Seth asked, an unlit cigarette hanging lopsidedly out of his mouth.

"Is it that bad?" Mikoto asked, immediately blushing a bright red.

"It's…original," Kashiya continued to laugh. "But no worries, no one will be able to recognize you."

Ryuu stared at Kai for moment, and shook his head, smiling, "I wonder how you get such strange clothing in your wardrobe sometimes."

Kai grabbed his younger brother around the neck and gave him a noogie, "The shirt belongs to my lover, he left it last time around."

Ryuu rolled his eyes and pulled away. "Not in front of them…" he grumbled.

Kai merely smiled and walked back into his room, but he lingered in the doorway before disappearing. "If my service is ever needed again, then please let me know," he bowed, taking Mikoto's hand and raising it to where he could barely press his lips against it. He watched out of the corner of his eye as Ryuu seethed, then still smiling, stood erect and shut his bedroom door behind him.

Once he had disappeared the group of four walked down the hallway, Kashiya giggling the entire time. "He's an interesting one, isn't he? Ryuu, I've decided that I like your brother!"

Ryuu laughed and shook his head. "Interesting is hardly the word. Eccentric is a bit closer."

Mikoto smiled really big, "He reminds me of my eldest brother…" she said quietly, looking back at bedroom door, now shut tight.

"Oh really? How so?" Kashiya asked, prodding Seth in the side with her elbow, as if to get his attention.

"Mannerisms mainly," she continued to smile, then she turned and looked at Ryuu, "Even as eccentric as you think Kai may be, just keep in mind that I'm sure he cares for you more than you realize. It's one of those things that you don't notice until it's gone, though. I was so angry at Kuja for the longest time…I hated him for leaving me…but once he was gone forever…it left a void in me that will probably always be empty."

She was now aware that everyone had stopped, mid-step to listen to her spiel. She blushed a little and looked at the floor. "Anyway…I better leave now. I don't want to impose on your family any longer."

"Kashiya, can I get your phone number? I'd like to know that you guys made it to your house safely," Ryuu said thoughtfully.

"Sure thing!" she exclaimed, pulling an ink pen from her purse. Hurriedly, she scribbled the digits down on the back of Ryuu's hand, then waving goodbye, Mikoto, Kashiya and Seth walked out of his house.

It was dark outside now, which made Mikoto wonder how long she slept. If they had returned to Lindblum around noon, and she had been taken shortly after then, she had to have been sleeping for at least seven or eight hours.

"Stay quiet…" Seth whispered as they walked out onto the streets. "How're we going to get her to your place? Air cabs would be too risky," he whispered to Kashiya.

"The Industrial district isn't _too _far of a walk from here…"

"We're in the Theatre district!"

Kashiya bit her lip as she thought. "Well, would it be _that _big of a gamble to use the air cabs then? I mean, it's late, not many people will be on them at this time of night."

"Granted…" Seth sighed. "Look, I'm not too worried about all of that. Truthfully, you two could probably ride the air cab, no one would be able to recognize Mikoto. But they'd be able to recognize me. I created a disturbance in the crowd, and these battle wounds aren't exactly secretive either," he pointed up to his bruised eye and cut lip.

"Don't be silly. It wasn't you that they were trying to burn, you're safe."

"So…I don't understand…are we braving the air cab?" Mikoto asked softly.

Seth and Kashiya traded uneasy glances, then nodded to each other. "Don't have much of a choice…" Kashiya said slowly.

The three walked to the air cab station in silence. When they got there, Kashiya approached the counter, "When's the next cab for the Industrial district coming?" she asked politely.

"The next one is getting ready to depart. If you hurry you can still make it," the man behind the counter replied.

"Okay, thank you!" she exclaimed. "Come on, guys! Let's try to catch it before it leaves us!"

They sprinted in the direction of the air cab. Mikoto saw the conductor standing beside the open door, waiting impatiently for them to hurry up and board.

"Industrial district?" Kashiya asked, hoping to confirm it was the right destination.

The conductor nodded impatiently and shooed them into the cab.

Kashiya's theory was correct. Not many people rode the air cabs late at night. The only others in the cab were two middle-aged women. Mikoto, Kashiya and Seth stood in a huddle on the opposite side of the cab, hoping to keep the women from taking too much notice of them.

"Did you hear what happened today in the Business district?"

"No, what?"

"Well, I was talking with Allyce, and she said that there was a witch burning."

"They found a witch? Here in Lindblum!?" one of the women panicked.

"Yes, but they took care of her. Some boy came and pulled her off of the stake, but she'd already been on it for a good fifteen minutes. She won't survive. The burns had to have been severe."

"Serves her right. Did she honestly think that she could just barge right into town and not expect to be found out? I wonder what kind of onslaught she was planning?"

Mikoto pretended to be very interested in a stain on the floor of the cab. She felt her face reddening as the two women continued to talk.

"Witches are a disgrace to society. They should all be handled in the same way. The only good witch is a dead one."

When Mikoto looked up she saw Seth's face distorted in an angry scowl. He looked as if he were on the verge of pummeling something, and the only thing holding him back was the thought of giving away their identities. Kashiya on the other hand began tapping her foot impatiently.

"What kind of witch was she? Did they say?"

"She apparently tried to attack one of the men who brought her to the stake. He said that she conjured fire into her hand and hurled it at him."

"Is he all right?"

"Oh, he'll be fine. It didn't hurt him too much. What she got was much worse."

"But you said she was taken off of the stake! Do you think she might've used her powers to heal herself?"

"Dear God, let's hope not! For the sake of humanity and this town, that would be horrible!"

"The last thing I want is a witch burning down my house while I sleep!"

Seth's hands were now clenched into fists and he was grinding his teeth.

Kashiya's amethyst eyes were glowing a dangerous color, and she was drumming her manicured nails against her forearms in anger. Yet, the women continued in their conversation. Since she was the only person who had not made herself known at the burning, Kashiya turned around and walked to where the two women were standing.

"I'm sorry, ladies," she said a bit more harshly than she meant, "but your conversation is very loud. My friend over here witnessed the burning and it had left a negative impression. She'd prefer if you didn't discuss it anymore around her."

"We apologize," one of the women said, smiling. "And tell your friend we're sorry. Youngin's like you shouldn't have to witness the evilness of witches, or have to experience watching their burnings. I'd imagine how it would have a traumatizing effect."

Kashiya nodded, and turned back to Seth and Mikoto.

"Thanks," Mikoto mumbled.

"No problem," Kashiya smiled, sadly, then lowering her voice, said, "Don't worry about what they say. We wouldn't be risking our necks for you if we thought you were like that."

Mikoto smiled back weakly and continued to stare at the floor.

"You handled that much more civilly than I would have…" Seth said.

"Yes, I'm sure your plan of action would have included a gun and a couple of shells," she chuckled.

Seth raised his eyebrows but said nothing more.

Finally the air cab slowed to a stop, and the doors opened with a mechanic squeal. Mikoto was the first to dash for the exit, wanting to get as far away from the women as possible. Seth and Kashiya followed closely behind her.

"Well," Seth sighed, "This is where I'm leaving you two. I don't want to follow you home and create any suspicions."

"Alright," Kashiya nodded.

"How far of a walk is your apartment from the air cab station?"

"No more than ten minutes. We'll be fine," she reassured.

Still looking slightly uneasy about leaving them, he waved goodbye and started down the opposite way.

"What _does _Seth do for a living anyway? Do you know, Mikoto?" Kashiya asked. "If he lives in the Industrial district, my guess it's an industrial profession…"

"He's a mechanic," Mikoto said. "Or, that's what he used to be. I'm not sure if he still does that kind of work."

"Oh, I see." Kashiya glanced at her watch. "We better hurry to my place, it's almost eleven, and these aren't the best streets to be on late at night."

Mikoto nodded and the two girls made their way down the dimly lit streets of the Industrial district. Not many people were out except a few drunks.

It wasn't too long when Kashiya pointed to a tall building just in sight. "That's my apartment building, we're almost there. Now we just have to figure out what we're going to do about clothes…and how long you're going to stay…" She shook her head and continued to walk. Kashiya was just realizing just how complicated this was going to get.

"Good evening Ms. O'Malley, you were sure out late tonight," someone said as they passed him to get to her apartment.

"Hi Oscar, yeah, today's been pretty hectic."

She reached into her purse and searched frantically for her keys. After she found them she jammed them into the doorknob and threw the door open, flipped on the lights, shut the door behind her and locked it up.

"Steer clear of him, do you understand?" Kashiya asked, turning to look at Mikoto.

"Okay…?" the Genome said uneasily.

"He's a convicted rapist and child molester. Stay _away _from him!"

"How close to you does he live?!"

"A few blocks away. I'm telling you, if you see him, either find someone to cling to, be it a stranger or not, or get your ass back to the apartment. Capice?"

With wide eyes, Mikoto nodded.

Kashiya ran her fingers through her hair nervously then looked around the room, making strange popping noises with her mouth. "Blankets…blankets…" she repeated. "Okay, here's a plan…" she proposed, "We take the mattresses off of my bed and we each get one. I have several sheets somewhere…I'll just have to find them."

Mikoto nodded, "Do you need any help?"

Kashiya chewed on one of her nails and looked around the room. "The spare sheets should be in the closet over there," she pointed to a closet on the opposite side of the room. "You can check for me while I situate the mattresses."

It wasn't too long before everything was settled. The lights were off, and Kashiya and Mikoto were lying on their own mattresses, staring up at the ceiling.

"I'm really sorry about what happened today. That should have never happened."

"Well, it's not the first time something like this has happened to me."

"I'm pretty sure it's never been that extreme though."

Mikoto mentally scoffed at that comment. Though she had never been burned before, she'd had her share of bad experiences with the 'norm' of Gaia. That's why she tried to remain secluded most of the time.

It was quiet again, and Mikoto knew that Kashiya was probably asleep. As much as she wanted to sleep too, events from earlier that day played in her mind non-stop, and when she did manage to doze off, she could feel the fire eating at her flesh in her dreams.

After a miserable hour of tossing and turning, a loud ringing sound startled her out of her thoughts. Kashiya groaned loudly and Mikoto heard the sound of an agitated hand hitting the telephone receiver. "Hello?" she asked groggily.

There was a pause as she listened to the other person, but then she groaned and hung up the phone.

"Who was it?" Mikoto asked.

Kashiya ignored the question and rolled over in bed.

The phone rang a second time.

"What do you want now?" Kashiya asked, picking up the phone. She paused and listened, and from Mikoto's bed she could hear frantic babbling coming from the earpiece. "Well what do you expect me to do? You call at one in the morning to check on us? If I answered the phone, doesn't that mean we're alive?" There was another pause, then the woman groaned out loud and yelled, "Mikoto you talk to him, he's your boyfriend anyway!"

Slightly confused she picked up the phone. "Hello?"

"Hey, you guys get home all right? Everything okay?" it was Ryuu's voice.

"Yeah, we're all right."

"That's awesome. Look, I had to apologize for my dad. I know that he seemed really harsh tonight…" he stopped for a moment and tried to find a different approach, "okay, I admit he was very harsh tonight. But you have to understand for someone who served in the Lindblum army, a mage of any sort is a threat."

"I understand…" she said quietly, her voice trailing off.

"Please, don't be upset. If mom and I had our way, you'd be staying here."

"I'm not upset. It's not like you called me a witch."

"Mikoto, people are idiots. Don't listen to them, because they don't know what they're talking about. They know _nothing_."

She couldn't help but smile.

"Anyway, how long are you staying in Lindblum? You're not going to leave, are you?"

"It's dangerous if I stay here too long…" she said.

"Even if we let this entire thing cool down, you don't think you could stay?"

"I want to stay, Ryuu. Lord only knows how much I want to stay…"

"Well, I just want you to know, that if you leave, I'm following you."

"What?"

"You heard me Mik, I'd follow you…to the end of the world…"

To be continued…


	11. Bicycle Race

**_"And I'd give up forever to touch you, 'cause I know that you feel me somehow. You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be, and I don't want to go home right now. And all I can taste is this moment, and all I can breathe is your life. 'Cause sooner or later it's over, I just don't want to miss you tonight._**

**_"And I don't want the world to see me, 'cause I don't think that they'd understand. But when everything's made to be broken, I just want you to know who I am."_**

_-The Goo Goo Dolls, "Iris"_

**A/N: **I got a lot of really good questions in the reviews for last chapter. However, I cannot answer them without giving important details in the story away. But you'll find out in this chapter exactly what you want to know. I'm sure. o

Chapter 11

The stony streets of Lindblum were blanketed with a thick darkness. A darkness that was only provided late at night after all of the street candles had been blown out. Utilizing this to her benefit, Mikoto slunk through the streets stealthily. Kashiya was following behind her.

"Mikoto!" she whispered as the two rounded a corner. The Genome stopped abruptly and turned to face her counterpart. "Don't you think this is a bit risky? I mean… it's only been three days!"

"What's the worst that can happen?"

Kashiya stared at her, mouth agape. "You're joking, right?" she whispered harshly. She couldn't believe those words had even come out of Mikoto's mouth. Any number of things could happen to her, especially after what had happened just the other day. But, whether or not Mikoto had meant it, Kashiya couldn't find out, because the Genome merely gave her a sly smile and started off again.

"Where do you plan on going? I'm sure the word about this has spread all over the mainland!"

"I'm not going anywhere on the mainland. My house isn't even located around here."

"I thought you lived in Treno!"

"That's my other house."

"Your _other _house?"

"Yes. And it's somewhere that no one would be able to find."

"Oh…"

It was silent between the two girls as they ran down the alleyway. While turning another corner, Kashiya's booted foot came in contact with the side of a metal trashcan. The sound of the hollow 'thunk' and a cry of an alley cat resonated through the empty streets. Mikoto stopped and turned around to shush her.

"Sorry," the medic replied sheepishly, still running to catch up with her smaller friend. Mikoto was much more agile than she, and the longer they ran, the harder it was for Kashiya to keep up. "But how do you expect to check your airship out?"

"I'm not…"

"But! That's breaking the law! You won't only be wanted because you can use magic! You'll have a warrant out for your arrest because you left without clearan-" Kashiya stopped mid-sentence.

When she didn't finish, Mikoto sighed exasperatedly and said, "What?"

Kashiya pointed a shaky finger over Mikoto's shoulder, and the blond spun around on her heel to look at what she was pointing to, and when she saw for herself, she gasped and covered her mouth, so as not to scream and give away their position.

It took several minutes for Mikoto to comprehend what she was seeing. Without even realizing it, she had made it all the way to the airship dock. There was the Red Rose, in plain view in front of her. But at first glance, she couldn't recognize it. Several windows were shattered from what appeared to have been bricks. Propellers had been ripped off and thrown haphazardly around the airship.

However, the one thing that was the most noticeable, the one thing that hit Mikoto the hardest was the spray painted note on the mast of the ship. "Don't set foot in Lindblum again!" was scrawled across the mast in red paint.

"I'm so sorry, Mikoto…" Kashiya whispered, reaching forward to touch her arm reassuringly.

Mikoto flinched and tore her arm away from the gesture.

"Look, sweetie, I'm sorry, I really am. People are morons, I can't do anything about the ignorance of the masses, okay?"

The Genome turned around, "How do you expect me to get away now? They've destroyed my only mode of transportation!" she seethed. "I don't have enough money on me to just buy a new one!"

"Hey, calm down! If you can just get to Bohden Station, then you can border cross and get to Treno. You have a house there that you can hide away in for a while, maybe you can buy a new airship there…"

"I love your optimism, but if you buy anything in Treno that's _not _at the auction house, it's because it's been stolen and is being pawned off."

Kashiya bit her lip, her visible eye darting from place to place as she thought. "You know that you're still welcome at my place, right? You might as well come back until we can think of something else."

Mikoto's hands were clenched into fists so tightly that she could feel her nails boring into her palms. "I just love staying in a town where everyone wants to kill me!"

"Mikoto!" Kashiya whispered a bit more harshly. She grabbed the Genome's hands and held them in front of her, "Listen to me. Not everyone wants to kill you. You still have us. We will help you. Just stay calm and let's go back to my apartment, maybe even call up the others, we'll try and make a rational decision, okay?"

Now, whenever Mikoto took in a breath, it sounded as if she was doing her all to not curl up and sob.

Kashiya looked at her with pity, then she wrapped an arm around Mikoto in a comforting way and said, "Come on, let's get back. It's cold out."

"Rain, rain, rain…" Kashiya muttered to herself as she looked up from her chemistry set and out the window. "That's all it's been doing for two days now."

Mikoto didn't say anything. She didn't even acknowledge that Kashiya had even spoken. Instead she continued to look out the window from the chair she had pulled up next to it.

The rain slapped violently against the window and slid down the glass. Mikoto sighed and pressed her cheek against the cool glass panes. She had been staying with Kashiya for almost a week now, and in that time period, she had stayed mainly in the house. Kashiya hardly left either, though she claimed that she never got out much before anyway. She always did her work at home.

While in Lindblum, Kashiya bottled many potions and different illness remedies for the drug store in the Business District, and she was paid pretty good money for it also. Because there was little else for Mikoto to do, she sat around most of the day, reading, and would occasionally label bottles if Kashiya needed help.

With a sigh, Kashiya put down a bottle of a translucent pink liquid, and stared sadly at Mikoto's back. "I know you're down, but you don't need to mope all the time."

"I wonder when the rain will stop…" Mikoto said monotonously, as if she hadn't heard Kashiya's earlier comment.

"Have you ever heard the ancient legend about why it's always raining in Burmecia?"

Mikoto turned away from the window and shook her head.

Kashiya smiled and patted the floor beside her. Nonchalantly, Mikoto sauntered over beside her and sat down. "Well, knowing the state of Burmecia, it's obvious that if any one culture had any sort of legend on rain, then it would have to be them, as the city is perpetually being rained on."

Mikoto nodded in agreement. Now that Kashiya knew she had the girl's attention, she completely set aside her work and cleared the area of floor in front of her that her tools were cluttered across.

"Well, when Burmecia first started to flourish, the weather was always perfect. The air was temperate, not too hot, not too cold. But unlike now, it didn't rain as much as we deem 'normal'. As a matter of fact, one could say that it suffered from droughts because of the lack of rain.

"Burmecia to this day is known for two things: number one being the rain, and two is the infamous league of Dragon Knights. Back then, Burmecia was more docile, much more like Cleyra was fabled to be. But there were still the Dragon Knights. Before the country became so war-torn and battle obsessed, the Dragon Knights were trained to merely defend their people from the constant threat of the Dragons who lived in the mountains they had build their cities so close to.

"Dragons are an ancient species. They're very intelligent and cunning. With all the stereotypes that fly around, one would think that they're a savage and bloodthirsty race, but that's not it at all. Dragons are merely very territorial, much like a dog. When you enter a Dragon's territory, you're asking for a fight.

"The Burmecians were just lucky enough to do that. Their entire colony was built upon so called 'Dragon Territory' because the resources were so rich. Of course the Dragons weren't going to stand for their land being taken away from them without a fight, so there were constant attacks on different villages. Especially the ones closer to the mountain.

"While most of the Dragon Knights stayed back and fought each Dragon that came their way, there was one who decided that enough blood had been spilled on their behalf, and instead went to settle the problem a different way. His name was Celandir. He wanted to do what no Burmecian had dared before. He went to talk to the King of Dragons, Bahamut." Kashiya looked up to make sure that Mikoto was really listening and not just spacing off, and surely enough she was listening very intently.

"For days, he climbed up the mountainside, dodging obstacles and trying to keep out of the sight of the carnivorous beasts that raided the air. He traveled deeper into the Dragons' territory every day, putting his life in greater danger. After almost a week of starvation and roughing the wilderness, he found himself in the cave of the King Dragon.

"He walked down the narrow passageway as quietly as he could, knowing full well that each step he took drew him closer to imminent danger. Soon he could hear the snoring of a large entity. It was difficult to see through the vast darkness of the cave, and Celandir had no idea what he was walking toward until he hit a wall of scales."

"Gee whiz, Kash, you sound like you're reciting a storybook," Mikoto laughed.

"Sorry," the medic blushed. "It's my passion, I suppose."

"You should be a writer," Mikoto smiled, then she motioned with her hand for Kashiya to continue.

"Anyway, so he had definitely ran directly into Bahamut's hind leg. The Dragon roared, emitting flames from his nostrils and demanded, 'Who goes there!?'" Kashiya said in a deep voice to imitate the Dragon's. "Celandir, though nervous, replied, 'It is I, Celandir of Burmecia. I wish to make a treaty with you, great Dragon King.' He bowed low, and Bahamut stared at him all the while.

" 'What is it that you wish of me?'

" 'Only that we can stop the shedding of blood between our brethren. My people have lost many lives, as I am sure your brothers have as well.'

"Bahamut just looked at him for a while, as if debating whether or not to hear him out, or to use him as a quick snack, then he said, 'Speak, mortal, and chose thy words carefully, for if thou sayith something I do not like, then I shall not hesitate to kill thee.'"

"Oh, that sucks for Celandir," Mikoto said softly.

Nodding, Kashiya continued. "So then Celandir proposed that if the Burmecians promised to not take advantage of the natural resources and cultivated the land properly, then the Dragons should promise to stop attacking the mountainside villages. The spilling of blood would stop on both sides. Though he seemed unsure at first, Bahamut agreed to it, saying that if the Burmecians did not keep up with their end of the bargain, they would regret it."

"Ah…I understand now…I think…" Mikoto said.

Kashiya smiled sweetly. "The rest of the story is self explanatory. Celandir got back and told his people of the treaty. For a while, the Burmecians and Dragons were able to coexist. However, after so many years, the new generations began to take things for granted. All of a sudden, they were cultivating much more than they needed to survive and they began to trade it with other countries for warring goods.

"Almost four hundred years old, Bahamut watched as his treaty with the now deceased Celandir crumbled, and to punish the Burmecians for not keeping up with their promise, he cursed the entire country so that it rained nonstop.

"The Burmecians perceive that the reason Bahamut cursed the rain upon them, was to cleanse their nation because it had been soiled with ungratefulness and sheer arrogance."

"So, what you're saying is that it rains to cleanse?"

Kashiya nodded, still smiling. "If you ask me, it's raining in Lindblum to cleanse away all of the sin and hatred that have been so thick in these streets. It's washing away all of the dirty words, threats and scorch marks that have been left by the ignorant that live here."

Wide eyed, Mikoto felt like applauding Kashiya. "You are brilliant, has anyone ever told you that?"

"Not enough as I would like," Kashiya laughed.

"I love how you seem to connect everything with legends or myths."

"Yeah, well, I feel that if we don't know our history and learn from our mistakes, then we are only doomed to repeat it. As you can see from just the other day, some already are."

Mikoto didn't reply, instead she got up from where she had seated herself and walked into the next room of the apartment where Kashiya kept a lot of old junk she salvaged from one place or another. "Where are you going?" Kashiya called after her, but didn't bother to look up.

"Nowhere, just looking around."

"There's not much in there. Not much of any use that is."

Mikoto shrugged and continued to nose her way through the mountains of odd trinkets. Kashiya had a treasure trove of junk and she didn't even realize it. "Do you know what most of this stuff is?" Mikoto asked loudly.

Kashiya sighed and wiped her hands on her jeans. Stretching her arms over her head, she stood up and walked into the other room to join Mikoto in her search. "Truthfully, no."

"This," Mikoto breathed, holding up a clear blue rock, "Is an Aquamarine."

"I know that," Kashiya rolled her eyes, snatching the jewel from Mikoto.

"Do you know what it's used for?"

"To put on jewelry?"

Mikoto smiled and pulled the cerulean jewel from Kashiya again. "This 'rock' was said to have special powers by the Madin Sarians. They believed that the souls of Eidolons lived in certain jewels. It was said that Leviathan made Aquamarine his home, and if one possesses the power, he or she can call forth an Eidolon by concentrating their very mind and will into the center of this jewel."

"Do you think I cou-?"

"It depends on whether or not you believe your ancestors lived in Madin Sari. Even if it was generations ago, if any Summoner was ever in your family, you might have enough power to call forth Eidolons."

Kashiya's mouth was agape. "So you're saying if I have just one Summoner in my family history, I have a chance of being able to call forth Eidolons?"

"Perhaps."

The medic's amethyst eyes darted back and forth between the Aquamarine and Mikoto, as if trying to figure out if there was any truth in her statement. Finally, beaming to herself, Kashiya pocketed the jewel.

"So, do you know anything else about any of the other junk I have in here?"

"Well, let's see…" Mikoto scanned the room and her heart almost stopped upon seeing a box with a family emblem on it.

"I-Is that?" she asked, pointing a shaky finger at the box.

"What?"

Bounding over several stacks of old magazines, Mikoto opened up the small wooden box. The smell of rotting wood and mildew arose from within, but it didn't matter, because Mikoto was looking at one of the things she missed most about Zidane.

"You own a deck of Tetra Master cards?"

"Is that what those are? I bought them at a pawnshop eons ago. I had no idea what they were used for, or how to use them, but they were cheap and they looked interesting."

"Do you have the board to go with them?"

"Yeah, it should be back there somewhere. My friend and I tried and tried to get it to work, but nothing was happening. I figured it was just broken."

"Not broken, you just don't know how to make it work."

"How do you?"

"Magic," Mikoto smiled.

"Oh, wow. Mik, don't you think you're going a bit overboard here? I mean, don't get me wrong, I love you to death, but magic in the middle of Lindblum? That's what you're in hiding from, you don't want to risk having someone find you out while you're staying here."

"Gaians haven't practiced magic in almost one hundred years. They can't even sense it anymore. The ability to sense magic lies in children and animals nowadays."

"Children? Still, don't you think it's chancing it?"

"If children have never experienced magic, they don't know what they're sensing."

"I guess you have a point…" Kashiya chewed on her lip in doubt. "But still, it worries me."

"Don't tell me you've never wondered how to play it."

"I have!"

"Then come on! Let's take it in the living room! I have Zidane's old cards in my backpack."

"Zidane? You have a brother named Zidane?"

Mikoto turned bright red. _Great, _she thought to herself. _She's almost definitely heard of him._

"Was he named after the king of Alexandria?"

"Y-Yeah…" Mikoto smiled uneasily.

Kashiya cocked her head to the side. "You know, this is going to sound really weird, but now that I think of it, you look a lot like the old paintings of King Zidane. You could practically be his sister!"

"Yeah…weird, huh? That's…probably why mom named him that, they looked a lot a like."

Kashiya squinted her eyes and continued to stare, making Mikoto feel very uncomfortable. Mikoto meanwhile pretended not to notice, and instead dug through her leather backpack for the old deck of cards.

"They're good luck. So, we're not playing for keeps," she announced upon pulling them out.

"I see. So you played this with your brother then?"

"Yeah, he traveled around the world and collected all sorts of cards before he died."

"That's really neat. I want to travel the world one day," Kashiya said, a dreamy expression creeping across her face.

Mikoto sighed to herself. She was so grateful that Kashiya changed the subject, she had to be more careful about what she said around her. "So…are we going to play?"

"Yeah!" Kashiya exclaimed, plopping down on the floor and drawing an old tattered quilt around her shoulders. "So how do we play?"

"First of all," Mikoto started as she ruffled through Zidane's old deck, "You try to find your five most powerful cards."

"How can I tell if they're more powerful?"

"The higher the numbers are, then the higher their attack power is. If there are letters instead of numbers then they're really powerful."

Kashiya furrowed her eyebrows as she searched through the deck. "Five, right?" she asked looking up. Mikoto nodded. With a sigh, she pulled five cards out and held them in front of her like a fan.

"So…sum up the game for me and I'll tell you whether or not I understand."

Mikoto sat down her five choice cards and pulled two random cards from her deck. With those cards she explained about the arrows and how battles work.

"Okay, okay…I understand. So…let's see if I can beat you!"

"All right, you can try," Mikoto smiled. She placed the cards down on the floor and put both of her hands on the Tetra board. She closed her eyes and chanted something that Kashiya couldn't quite make out, and suddenly the board was surrounded by a faint light blue aura.

"How do we decide who goes first?"

"Simple," Mikoto beamed, "Blue or orange?"

"Huh?"

"Choose a color!"

"Oh…uh…blue I guess."

Mikoto reached into her pocket and pulled out an ovular stone that seemed to have a side of sapphire and a side of topaz. With a flick of her thumb, the stone spiraled into the air and landed sapphire-side up on the floor beside Mikoto's thigh. "Blue wins. You go first."

"So I just put one of these cards anywhere on the board, right?"

"In any open space that you can find."

Smirking to herself, Kashiya placed down her first card. It was a Zuu. Mikoto looked at the card confusedly and then back to Kashiya who was smirking victoriously. "Is that seriously one of your best cards?" she asked.

"It's _the _best," the medic stated very matter-of-factly. Mikoto looked down at her hand, which held cards as powerful as Ark, Alexander and Flare. There would be no competition in this game.

"Ha! I win again!" Kashiya yelled, throwing her arms and legs into the air simultaneously.

"This is crazy! I don't understand!"

"You think that you can win by pure brute force…and maybe sometimes you can. But I'm a strategist. I can find other ways to win."

As much as Mikoto hated to admit it, Kashiya had a wonderful point. No doubt that Mikoto had shown Kashiya who was boss the first several times they played, but Kashiya began using the arrows to her advantage, and she was winning purely by claiming Mikoto's unprotected cards.

"If this game was for keeps, I'd have so many cool cards by this point."

That statement couldn't have been truer. By this point Mikoto would have lost all of her cards from Alexander to the Namingway card. Even Chubby Chocobo couldn't hold his ground against Kashiya's horribly evil Hedgehog Pies.

"This is a wonderful game!" Kashiya laughed gleefully. "I can't believe I went so long without ever playing it! I'm damn good at this!"

"Yeah, don't you wish that you lived during a time that they had card tournaments at the Card Stadium in Treno?"

Kashiya looked up and for a while Mikoto couldn't tell if she screwed up again by saying that. But after a few awkward seconds of silence, Kashiya laughed and said, "Yeah, I'd kick all of their sorry asses with my Fangs and Goblins."

"You're sure kicking mine."

"I noticed. It's because none of your high cards have many arrows, and they're easy to claim."

"I figured that much out," Mikoto said just as the phone rang. "I'll go get it."

"Let it ring!" Kashiya exclaimed pulling Mikoto back down by the back of the shirt. "Play another game!"

"Or two or three?" Mikoto giggled.

"Yeah! Come on!"

Mikoto sat back down and played game after game against the medic. The phone rang and rang and rang, as if whoever was calling was desperate. But two games later, it had stopped all together. "Who do you think is trying so hard to get a hold of us?"

"Well, whatever it was about must not have been that important."

"What makes you say that?"

"They stopped calling."

"We didn't pick up the phone."

"Point?"

"Nevermind," Mikoto laughed.

"Let's play another game!"

"Kash, as much as I love to play Tetra Master, my back and neck are killing me from hunching over the board like this."

"Awww…come on Mik! Don't be such a party pooper!"

"I'm serious though, Kash, I feel like if I hunch over this board, even for just one more game, then my spinal column will collapse, and that won't be a pretty sight."

"I'm a medic. I could help."

Mikoto laughed. "No, no more for me. Maybe you can call Seth up and see if he wants to play."

"But that means I'll have to teach him," she whined. "And he's a strategic thinker too. He'll beat me, then I won't get this awesome feeling of victory all the time."

"Then call the twins. I'm sure they'd love to hear from you."

Kashiya made a face that resembled a face someone would make after sucking on a lemon. "I'll call Seth, I guess," she said.

With a weak smile, Mikoto stood up and stretched her back. She felt each and every joint pop from the base of her skull to right above her tail. With an awkward hobble (because she had been sitting cross-legged) Mikoto made her way to the kitchen to make herself some hot tea. As she was heating up some water she heard an odd sputtering sound coming from outside, followed by three honks of a horn.

"That was fast," Kashiya said with a smile. "I just got off of the phone with him five minutes ago."

"Seth?"

"Yeah, he has no idea what he's in for," Kashiya said with an evil grin spreading across her face.

"Lucky guy," Mikoto chuckled as she poured the water into an old chipped teacup.

The horn bellowed a few more times, but the two girls ignored it, dismissing it as Seth trying to piss some poor elderly citizen off. Finally the sound of someone running up the stairs in a frantic manner could be heard. Kashiya chuckled, "Oh, he's pissed someone off."

"And he's running from the fight? That's not like Seth."

"Maybe not, but I suppose it all depends on who's angry at him."

"Very t-" but before she could even finish saying 'true', Kashiya's front door was thrown open and Ryuu tumbled in.

"Ryuu!" Kashiya yelled, "What're you doing here? And where's Seth?"

"You guys weren't answering the phone, I had to come check up on you. I didn't know if you were still alive or what."

"We're just fine, Ryuu," Mikoto laughed.

"I can see that now," he sighed, looking very relieved. "Hey, Mik…ya busy?"

Kashiya and Mikoto traded awkward glances, then the Genome looked back at the brunette and shook her head. "But I really shouldn't leave…especially in broad daylight, it's way too dangerous."

"I know…but…it's been raining for so long…and it finally stopped…"

"It stopped?"

Ryuu's eyes widened in astonishment and with a chuckle replied, "Yeah."

Mikoto ran to the window and sure enough, there was no sign of any rain clouds in the sky. The only reminders of the continuous storms were the many puddles left in the streets. Ryuu stood behind her and put a hand on her shoulder, "What exactly were you two up to if you didn't even notice it stop raining?"

"Playing cards," Kashiya announced, throwing her arms in the air. "And I am the champion!"

"Yeah," Mikoto blushed, "She beat me senseless."

"Oh yeah," the medic beamed, sticking her tongue out. "I rock."

"So, Mik…can I convince you to come with me?"

Still looking unsure, Mikoto looked at Kashiya who in turn just asked, "Where did you plan on taking her?"

"Just around…I was wanting to go for a ride since it finally stopped raining and my motorcycle has been getting lonely."

"Your motorcycle, huh?" Kashiya smirked.

Ryuu turned a brilliant red and snapped back, "Well she's been cooped up in your apartment long enough! She probably _wants _to get out!"

"Well, stop looking at me and ask _her _what she wants!"

At once both of the arguing figures spun on their heels to look directly at Mikoto. "Do you think it's a good idea?" they asked simultaneously.

"Well…" she looked at the floor uneasily. She hated it when things were left up to her. In all truth, she really didn't think it was such a good idea, but she wanted so badly to get out of Kashiya's apartment, even for just a little while. "How long will we be gone?"

Ryuu beamed and faced Kashiya looking victorious. "Okay, let's get out of here," he said taking her hand and leading her out.

"Wait, you didn't answer my question!"

"We'll figure that out later!" He got an excited look in his eyes, "Let's just be spontaneous!"

Upon leaving the front door, Kashiya called after them, "Don't forget to call with plans! I need to know where you are and when you're planning on getting back."

"Alright," Mikoto called over her shoulder, and followed Ryuu's brisk walk back to his bike, parked in front of the apartment complex.

He looked at it temporarily, then slowly picked up the helmet and handed it to Mikoto. "I only have one," he said, "So you put it on."

Mikoto's eyes immediately widened. "No, that's okay, you wear it." She wasn't about to take crash protection from him when she knew that no crash could kill her.

"Aw, come on, don't be like that. Just put it on, or we're not going anywhere."

"Then we aren't going anywhere. You wear the helmet."

"But it's been raining for so long!! I was really excited about it finally stopping and going for a ride."

"It's not fair to you if I take your helmet."

"There is no way I'd let a lady on my bike without a helmet."

Mikoto shook her head. "I'm not going to argue with you."

"Please? Come on, Mik. Please? You've been cooped up so long, you need to get out, and you know that you want to!"

"I do, but not if you're putting yourself in danger. We can find something else to do."

"I won't. I've been driving this baby for two years, and nothing has ever happened."

Mikoto was still hesitant, but Ryuu had already straddled the bike and had the engine revved up. "Come on, Mik. Live a little, and let's just be spontaneous today. We can do anything you want, whatever comes to your mind we'll do it. I have plenty of money to spare, so let's just go have some fun." With that trademark smile, he threw the helmet into her stomach lightly, and still doubtful, she hesitantly strapped the helmet to her head.

"You have to promise to be careful," she said uneasily as she shakily climbed into the seat behind him.

"I promise," he smiled deviously, then as soon as he felt her hold onto his waist, popped a wheelie and sped down the street.

"Ryuu!" she yelled, "Don't be stupid!"

"Aw, calm down! It's going to be fun!" he yelled over the overwhelming sound of rushing wind.

"Where are we going?" she shouted back.

"I don't know yet, I guess we'll find out," and with that, sped up and bit more and left the apartments behind in a cloud of smoke and dust.

With all of the wind blowing hard against her face, Mikoto could barely see where they were going. The world blurred past in her peripheral vision, mixing various colors and shapes together until she couldn't make out objects anymore.

They had probably been on the bike for ten minutes when suddenly Ryuu pulled off of the road and into a gas station. "I have an idea, and I'm going to need a full tank of gas to accomplish it," he said upon shutting off his bike's engine.

"Oh, and what's that?" Mikoto asked, throwing her legs over the side of the bike and getting off. She turned and looked at him, waiting for his response.

Ryuu smiled, "I'm getting you out of Lindblum," he whispered.

Mikoto looked at him confusedly, "How?" she finally asked.

"I can get thirty miles to the gallon on this. I can get you to Bohden station, and cross with you into Treno. You know, make sure you get there safely," smiling even bigger, he threw his arms up and yelled, "Road trip!"

Mikoto smiled back at him, "Okay," she concurred. "But what about your parents? I mean…what would they say?"

"They think it's time I moved out anyway."

"But I thought that you supported your family."

"I do, but dad does get pension from the army. They've been thinking of moving into a smaller house anyway, and once Kai and I are out of the way, they wouldn't have to pay for all of our stuff too."

"Well…we have a plan…I'll need to call Kash."

Ryuu pulled the gasoline nozzle from the gas tank of his motorcycle, put it back on its hook, wiped his hands on his pants and said, "Okay, and I'll pay for the gas."

"Wait, can I borrow you for a split second?"

"Sure, for what?"

"Just, stand in front of me while I use the phone. I don't want anyone to see me."

Ryuu chuckled and followed her to the payphone booth. Mikoto looked to either side of her, then stepped inside. She dropped a few gil into the slot just as Ryuu stood at the entrance, then dialed Kashiya's number.

The phone rang and rang and rang, and then finally someone picked up the phone, and Kashiya's familiar voice exclaimed, "Hello! Kashiya O'Malley, Tetra Master Extraordinaire, how can I help you?"

"Hey, Kash, it's me."

"Mik! What's your status?"

"We're going to try for Bohden station, so depending on whether or not we make it, we may not be coming back."

"You're leaving Lindblum!?"

"That's the goal."

Kashiya was silent, and Mikoto could hear her making popping noises with her mouth like she normally did when she was nervous or thinking. "You'll let me know if you need me, right?"

"Of course."

"And you'll call once you get to Bohden, right?"

"Definitely."

"Okay. Please, please, please, be sure to call. Okay?"

"All right. I will."

"It's already five, how do you plan on getting there?"

"Ryuu's bike, of course."

"Would you even be able to make it completely there tonight?"

"I don't know, but we can try."

Again, Mikoto could hear the nervous popping noises. "I don't care what time it is, you need to call once you get there, or let me know if your plans change."

"Will do."

Ryuu turned around and laughed, "Come on Kash, don't be such a worry wart, if you don't let her off the phone we can never leave."

"Mikoto, tell Ryuu to shove it up his ass," Kashiya said, and Mikoto could just see her rolling her eyes.

"I'll call back later, bye."

"Bye, be careful!"

And with that, Mikoto hung up the phone. "Let's get a move on."

"I need to pay for the gas first," Ryuu said, grabbing Mikoto and leading her inside the gas station.

"But Ryuu, they'll see me!"

Ryuu chuckled and with his hand, turned her face so that it was stuck to his side. "I don't want you standing out here alone," he murmured.

"Hey Ryuu, how're you today?" the man at the counter asked as soon as they entered.

"Doing good Mr. F, how're you?"

"I've been better," the man laughed, "Who's this you have with you? Your girlfriend, I presume?"

"Sure is, she's a bit shy."

"I see, no problem. I'm going to need 500 gil for your gas."

"Alrighty" Ryuu dug through his pocket and pulled out the correct currency.

"So, where're you two headed today?"

"We're not entirely sure yet."

The man laughed, "Oh, youth. I wish that I could be spontaneous and carefree again."

"Well see ya around, Mr. F!"

"Goodbye Ryuu! And you too little lady!"

Ryuu waved and then lead Mikoto out of the small building. "Ready to go?" he asked, getting back on his motorcycle.

"Yeah," she replied quietly, strapping on her helmet. Cautiously, she mounted the bike behind him, and once again, he revved the engine and tore off down the road.

It really did feel good to Mikoto to finally be out of the walls of Kashiya's house and as always, her entire spirit felt elevated just being around Ryuu.

"How far is Bohden Station from here?" Mikoto yelled over the hum of the engine.

"About five hours," Ryuu shouted back.

Five hours didn't seem so long.

That is until she spent an hour on the back of his bike, going extremely fast. When she could no longer feel her legs, or anything else from the waist down she knew that the next four hours would be long and not so pleasant.

After being on the bike for two hours, the sun started to set and Ryuu pulled off of the side of the road so that the two could sit on the grass and watch it go down. Being an autumn day, it was starting to get very cool out. Mikoto sported Ryuu's jacket while he wore a sweatshirt.

With a smile, Ryuu helped Mikoto up and they started up the hill to where Ryuu parked his motorcycle.

"At this rate, we'll be lucky to make it to Bohden by midnight," he said, helping Mikoto strap on her helmet. "And with the time difference, it'll be almost one in Lindblum once you call Kashiya."

"Well, she did say it didn't matter what time."

"True."

The two mounted the bike again, and again went on down the highway. Now Ryuu wasn't quite so reckless and it was more like a peaceful ride. The cold air made Mikoto's honey blond hair whip against her face violently, and stung her eyes. Tiredly, she hugged Ryuu's waist and buried her head between his shoulder blades.

For the longest time she fell in and out of sleep, and was only awoken due to city lights or Ryuu yelling something at her.

"We won't be able to stop for food if we want to make it to Bohden before midnight," he announced at one point. "But we can get something after we find ourselves a place to stay."

"Okay," Mikoto replied groggily.

"Are you sleeping back there? You sure aren't moving much," she heard him laugh.

"No, I'm awake."

And with that she fell asleep again. She got in a good long nap, when she was jolted by Ryuu reaching behind her and hitting her to get her attention.

"Huh?" she asked, half-awake.

"Are you even alive back there?"

She groaned, "Unfortunately."

"Well, then you can at least talk. It gets boring just driving, you know?"

The Genome groaned. "But I'm tired."

"Aha! So you were sleeping."

"Only a little," she yawned and sat up, "How much longer until we get there?"

"I say that from here we maybe have another ten minutes."

"Are you serious?" she exclaimed, sitting completely erect. "How long was I sleeping?"

"For a good portion of the ride, I'll say. And do you realize you say the funniest things while you sleep?"

"How can you hear me over the darn motor?"

"Well at one point you were yelling something in your sleep. I don't even remember what it was, but it was crazy."

"Great," she muttered to herself. "So I've been talking crazy talk in my sleep, is there anything else I should know about?"

"Well, as I found out, you do tend to drool a bit when you sleep."

"Are you serious!?"

"No, no, no…that was just a joke. I'm kidding, I'm kid-"

But before he could finish his sentence, Mikoto saw two small glowing eyes run out in the middle of the street. "Ryuu! Look out!" she screamed, interrupting him.

"What?" he asked confusedly, but when he saw the animal also, he swerved to the side of the road, only to hit a puddle left over from the rain storms from all week. Water sprayed up on both sides of the bike, soaking them both.

Out of instinct, he stepped on the brakes, causing the bike to hydroplane. He couldn't stop it, the bike only continued it's ride forward, still going extremely fast.

Mikoto was panicking, she didn't know what to do or if she could do anything in enough time. Everything seemed to be happening in play by play mode. The world seemed to slow down and she saw things differently. She could think her way through this.

A tree was coming up ahead. It was as if she saw it coming in slow motion. The bike was headed straight for it. Grabbing Ryuu's shoulders, Mikoto muttered a protect spell. Immediately, the boy was surrounded by a bright yellow aura. Then, next she somehow managed to turn her body, still holding on to Ryuu and throw him from the bike.

She watched him roll across the grass, wet with dew. There was a crash, an unmistakable explosion of some sort, and Mikoto felt her head collide with the tree, going at least forty miles per hour. The world blurred into a black haze and in seconds her eyes closed.

Before Ryuu knew what was going on, he was thrown from his bike. He couldn't breathe, the very wind had been knocked out of him. But as soon as he remembered just what happened, he jumped up from the ground and limped around. It was dark outside, but about fifty feet ahead he saw a fire of some sort.

"Mikoto!" he yelled into the darkness. "Where are you!?"

He had no flashlight, and the city lights just up ahead weren't close enough to help him at all. Awkwardly, he limped toward that fire, believing with every fiber of his being that he would find her and everything would be all right.

The fire was getting closer, he was almost there, and as soon as he approached it, he saw something that horrified him.

He had found Mikoto. She was pinned under the motorcycle, which was burning slowly. Her hair was matted with blood, and a small trail of the crimson liquid flowed down from her nose and mouth.

Ryuu panicked, he had no idea what to do. "Mikoto!" he yelled at her. "Mikoto! Are you all right?" She didn't answer him. She didn't even do so much as nod. Eyes brimming with tears, he studied her quickly and gathered that he still saw her chest moving up and down, very laboriously. "You're going to be okay, Mikoto. I'll make sure of it!" he said.

He looked around the site of the accident. How was he going to move burning hot metal? Worriedly, he ran his fingers through his long brown hair. "Okay, here goes nothing," he muttered to himself. Using the tree to steady him, he pressed his foot against the frame of the bike and very slowly was able to roll part of it off of her.

Mikoto groaned and his heart skipped a beat. "Mikoto!" he exclaimed, "Are you okay?"

There was no other response.

As hard as he tried, he couldn't move the bike any more. Panting with exhaustion, he ran and stood behind the Genome's head. "I may not be able to move the bike," he said slowly. He bent down and put his hands under her armpits. "But I can move you!" and with a grunt, he slowly pulled Mikoto out from under the machine. He heard a crack and knew right then that he had broken at least one of her legs.

Straining every possible muscle and joint in his body, he managed to pull her completely out and away from the scene of the accident. It was completely dark, he could barely see her. The only light was provided by the flicker of the nearby fire.

Holding tightly onto Mikoto's head, Ryuu bent down and wept over her. "Please, wake up, Mikoto. Wake up. You can be okay. I won't let you die. Please, Mikoto, wake up. Don't die on me, I'm not ready for this."

A droplet of water flicked him in the back of the head, and confusedly, Ryuu looked skyward. Another droplet hit him in the eye. Slowly, but surely, it was beginning to rain again. Still hugging Mikoto's head, Ryuu wept harder, letting his tears mix with the rain that poured from the heavens.

"Ryuu?" a familiar voice asked. He shook his head, keeping his eyes shut tightly. It had to be his imagination, or his mind playing tricks on him. "Ryuu…" the voice said again. "What's wrong? Don't cry…"

To be continued…

**Puck of Cleyra**: It's always good to see a new person reading our work. We're glad that you enjoyed the first story and we can only hope that the second lives up to the first's reputation. ((Crosses their fingers.))

**Kingpin: **Old friend! You're back! Glad that you're enjoying the story, and the action only continues to pick up from here on out! That's a promise! Action and angst! Yes!

**Dark Ice Dragon**: Kai was inspired by our favorite Japanese rock star, Miyavi, and he's probably one of my (Anna's) favorite original characters, though sadly, he will not be showing his beautiful face very much as he is busy with other…things. Heh.

**Megidramon:** Always wonderful to know of fellow Queen-lovers. They're wonderful, aren't they?

**Oblivion Viruses: **We haven't spoken in a while, which is sad because we used to talk all the time! Things are slowly but surely getting better, IM me sometime! Let me know what's going on in your life! (-Anna)

**Terryguy (Tereterhomdark2003)**: You are the one who asked the best question out of all reviewers. And we promise your answer with be answered…next chapter. o Until then, happy guessing!


	12. Don't Stop Me Now

**FFLover:** Thanks for the comment, don't worry the story isn't over yet. But this is probably the second to last chapter in all honesty. Erm…something like that. I'll have to figure it out. Anyway, the story's coming to an end.

**Puck of Cleyra: **Summoning won't play a big part in this story either I'm afraid. I have one idea, and whether or not I use it I haven't decided. But summoning is just a cool thing that I like to bring up from time to time. Don't hate me, I just like the idea of it.

**Kingpin:** I agree with that excerpt you posted! Sometimes you have this huge macho card and then someone's Fang card somehow beats it out. I don't know why or how, it just does.

**Oblivion Viruses: **You know what they say, "If it isn't bigger than you wheel, just run it over," but that's slightly more dangerous with a motorcycle. So, Ryuu did the right thing…in his own panic-stricken mind.

**CrimsonCobwebs: **Thank you so much for your beautiful artwork! I'm going to post it tonight if I can get onto the website! There's been somthing wrong with my computer but I think we've got it all fixed now!

**All readers: **Please visit our website and look at the art for yourself! We have quite a collection of some really neat art!

Chapter 12

"Mikoto? Oh shit, Mikoto, are you okay?" Ryuu asked desperately. "Everything happened so fast, and it's my fault. I should be the one hurt. What happened?" Though he tried to hold them back, tears were welling up in the corners of his almond-shaped eyes.

"I'll be fine," the Genome reassured to the best of her ability. She tried to sit herself up just enough to prove her point, but the pain in her legs was almost unbearable. She clenched her eyes shut, and hissing through her gritted teeth, attempted again to sit up. This time she managed, but she knew there was no way she would be able to get to her feet. She also realized to her horror, that both of her legs were broken and sitting at angles legs shouldn't make.

"How far are we from Treno?" she asked, trying not to think of the pain that was so noticeable.

"A few miles," Ryuu replied quickly. "Come on, I'll carry you. You need to see a doctor."

Before she could answer, the brunette bent own and helped the immobile girl onto his back. She screeched in pain when he grabbed her legs so that he would be able to carry her piggy-back.

"We can do this, Mik," he said.

"No, Ryuu, you can't take me to a doctor!" she pleaded with him.

"Why not? I have enough money, I'm sure and if we don't we can always ask Kashiya to spot us some. You need a doctor, Mik, you should see yourself."

"Ryuu, please, don't take me to a doctor. I'll be fine."

"Your legs are broken!"

"I promise I'll explain everything," she said, almost to the point of tears. "I promise. But please, don't take me to a doctor, they'll never understand."

"You must be delirious, you don't know what you're saying," Ryuu picked up his pace in order to reach town faster.

"NO!" she screamed, tears now rolling freely down her face. "RYUU! YOU HAVE TO BELIEVE ME!" She began to pound on his back with her fist, despite the shooting pain in her shoulder.

He stopped momentarily and looked at her over his shoulder. "What am I supposed to do then?" he asked, Mikoto could tell that he was beginning to get upset. "I don't know what else to do!"

"Let's just find an inn. I'll explain everything." She buried her head into the area between his shoulder blades. "Just please, you have to believe me, going to a doctor would be a _bad _idea."

With a sigh, Ryuu shook his head and continued toward town. "I don't understand you, Mik," he said shakily. "I'm worried…"

"Don't be, you'll just have to trust me."

"Okay, we'll go to an inn tonight, but if I don't agree with your explanation you're going to a hospital."

Her heart was pounding. If he didn't believe her it might as well be all over for her anyway. "If you can keep an open mind, then you'll have to agree with my explanation," she said through tears. There was no other way to get around this. He was going to find everything out. And he was going to find it all out that night. Putting off telling him could be hazardous to their life in Treno.

Just when Ryuu though that they would never find a place to stay for the night he came across an old tavern. Tired from carrying the extra weight of Mikoto, he rapped loudly at the thick wooden door. He stood there for a few minutes before an old woman missing several teeth opened it up. Face dripping with water from the pouring rain, Ryuu yelled over all the hubbub inside, "We require lodging for two. Do you have any room?"

"Just two 'o yee, eh?" the woman asked eyeing them both. "Aye, laddie. We 'ave a spare room. Come on in." She held open the door for them and led them through a dimly lit room where several of the townsfolk were gathered and drinking. Several drunken stares followed the two teenagers.

The old woman continued to lead the laden Ryuu up a long, and rather unstable, flight of stairs. Every step he took Ryuu heard the stairs creak ad groan as if warning him that they were ready to give in at any second.

Finally the woman unlocked a room with a giant ring of keys and opened the door for him. "Thank you," he muttered.

"Dain't say nuttin' 'o it," she gave him a toothless grin. "Sleep tight."

Once he heard the door close behind the woman Ryuu sat Mikoto down on the floor as gently as he could then sat behind her so that she could lean on him. "This may hurt," he warned, "But you're going to have to change before you use the bed. We both are wet and covered in blood."

She gripped Ryuu's arm as if was a lifeline, because she knew what was coming. As carefully as was able, Ryuu undid the button on her jeans and slowly pulled them off of her. Despite his caution as he worked, Mikoto squeezed his arm as the pain shot through her legs. He could see that her legs were mangled and turned in painful angles. Horrified, he turned away at the sight. "God, Mik…" he breathed out.

"Don't lose your nerve yet, you're going to have to help me set them, otherwise they'll heal that way," she managed to say through her gritted teeth.

He threw her tattered and blood stained jeans to the side. "How am I supposed to set them?" he asked. It wasn't as if he was trained in that sort of thing. "If only Kashiya was here…"

Ryuu's nervous eyes glanced at Mikoto then, he looked back at her legs. He looked around helplessly as he thought of something he could give her to bite on. With nothing else to offer, he ultimately took off his shirt. He rolled it up and stuck it in her mouth. "It might not taste great, but bite on that," he said kissing her forehead, "I wouldn't be able to stand it if I heard you scream."

She did as she was asked. Ryuu moved her to so that her back was against the bed and he stood in front of her, nervously wringing his hands. "Are you ready?" he asked. Mikoto nodded, clenching her eyes shut.

Biting his lip, Ryuu reached for her left leg. This one wasn't as badly mangled as the other. Before he lost his nerve, he twisted the leg back to the position it was supposed to be in. Mikoto screamed and flinched, but the fabric in her mouth muffled the sound. Ryuu's heart sank; he didn't want to cause her any more pain than she was already feeling.

She looked helplessly up at him and through her tears nodded for him to set the other leg. He could hear the bones in her leg pop and move around as he twisted it back into position and Mikoto's muffled scream echoed in his ears.

When he had finished setting the bones in each of her legs, he sat down beside her and put his hands on either side of his head, as if holding his ears would stop the ringing. Beside him, Mikoto's breathing began to slow again and she was finally calmed. He looked up and pulled the t-shirt from her mouth.

"I'm sorry," he apologized; though he really had nothing to apologize for.

"Help me to the bed," she said, very shakily.

Ryuu picked her up and upon doing so, realized something that almost caused him to drop her. "Y-You have a tail!" he exclaimed as he laid her on the bed.

She nodded solemnly. "Yes…I'll explain everything. But before I do, you had better change also and sit down. It will take a while."

Ryuu nodded and threw a small bag he had packed prior to the journey onto the bed. The bag had mainly just necessities, toiletries really. But, however he did manage to pack two fresh shirts. He threw one to Mikoto and took the other for himself. After changing into the clean shirts, Ryuu bent down and picked up the random articles of bloody clothing thrown across the room. He carried them into the attached bathroom, filled the tub with cold water and soap, and threw the clothes in there, hoping to get the majority of the stains out that way. From within the main room he could hear Mikoto softly speaking to Kashiya on the phone.

"We had some problems, we'll be a little late getting to Treno. …No, everything's okay. …I'm telling you the truth, everything will be just fine, I promise I'll call when we reach Treno…"

Her voice steadily got softer, or maybe he stopped paying attention. His mind was too fogged up with questions and worries to multi-task enough to listen and put on a new pair of pants. Once changed he paused before re-opening the bathroom door, then, preparing himself for the worst returned the room.

Mikoto was sitting on the bed, propped up by pillows, looking sadly at her bare legs. Though now they were straightened out, they were still bruised and dry blood covered them from various injuries she had sustained.

She switched her saddened gaze from her legs to Ryuu and motioned for him to sit on the bed next to her. He did just that and put an arm around her shoulder upon taking the offered seat.

"You know what I told you about my life?" she started very slowly.

"Yes…"

"That's not entirely true," she admitted, afraid by that point to do so much as even make eye contact with him. "The truth was so far fetched, I knew you wouldn't believe me. And if you did, you'd probably be scared of me."

"Not likely," he said quietly. "What happened?"

"When I said that my father was a scientist, that was true for the most part. But he is not technically my father. Yes, he did give me life, but I was never conceived. I never had a mother. I was born out of a grouping of cells, starting in a test tube. Both of my brothers and I were given life this way.

"You know that 'second moon' that you heard had life on it? Well, it did. If you can even call it that. Garland, the name of my creator, built an entire race of his own up there. We all looked identical. The only thing that differentiated my brothers and myself from our peers was a very simple thing, we had souls. All of the other 'Genomes' as Garland called them were empty vessels waiting for a single thing, when all life vanished from Gaia, the souls would be collected through the Iifa Tree and sent directly to Terra to inhabit the empty golems that haunted that planet. Terra was dead in all other aspects.

"My eldest brother was notorious down here on Gaia. He was a weapon's merchant, and he single handedly brought chaos across the great nations. He used Alexandria's Queen Brahne at the time as a pawn."

Ryuu looked at her with confusion in his eyes. "Queen Brahne's reign was…"

"I know, let me finish…

"After Brahne died in a ship wreck, he continued to wreak his havoc wherever he could, not realizing that the entire time he was doing this, he was really doing exactly what Garland wanted him to do.

"My other brother Zidane, was lost by Kuja in one of his extremely early journeys to Gaia and was raised by a popular theatre group that was also a group of thieves: Tantalus."

Ryuu stared at her in disbelief as she relayed these things to him.

"Zidane was raised from a very young age by the leader of this group, Baku. So young in fact that he did not know who Kuja was. By the time he found out who he was and what he was up to, he declared himself Kuja's rival. He would not allow someone to destroy a world that he had been raised to love.

"His pursuit of Kuja lead him back to Terra after almost fourteen years of being away. I recognized him the moment he set foot onto our soil. He was with a large group of his friends, seven to be exact. I led each and every one of them into Bran Bal, the main city in which I lived.

"After much difficulty, I finally got to speak with Zidane alone. I tried to tell him that he had been in fact created, just as I had, and that his place was here with me and everyone else. He wouldn't have it. The thought that he had not been conceived by a woman like he had been brought up to believe made him very upset. He ran away from me, and all of his friends that he loved so dearly.

"While trying to run away from his problems, he only ended up meeting them face-to-face. He ran into Garland, who tried to tell him the same that I did. But after Zidane showed his disobedience to a man who was such a control-freak, Garland decided to try and deactivate him by taking his soul and making him just a regular vessel. Something went wrong however, and that didn't happen. Zidane's soul was just too strong.

"Zidane's friends managed to find him before he went off the deep edge, and they all confronted Garland at once. They, however, did not kill him. Rather, Kuja did. Kuja had come back to Terra (against his will) to settle his score with Garland, which he succeeded in. However, none of the three of us knew what destroying Garland would lead to.

"Kuja used his legendary power of Trance to destroy Bran Bal completely. Zidane, in an attempt to flee the chaotic city, got me and all of the other genomes onto his airship and we crossed through the barrier that separated our two planets, the Shimmering Isle.

"The Genomes and I were dropped off in the Black Mage Village to stay until everything was over. Zidane literally went through hell and back trying to save Gaia from its demise, and in doing so he did manage to spare the planet. When he got back from his travels he knew that it was with Kuja's help that he survived a very important battle, and thus he began to look for his brother.

"Kuja had secluded himself in the Iifa Tree so that he could die alone, a broken and tormented man. Zidane was there with him for his last few words. After Kuja perished the Iifa Tree collapsed on top of Zidane.

"He was trapped under the branches for several months, in a coma. He awoke and found his way back to Alexandria where the woman he loved lived. She was the new crowned Queen, as her adoptive mother, Brahne had indeed died. He married her and inherited the crown of Alexandria.

"But something was very odd with him, as he found out. He managed to survive several life-threatening situations, not to mention the fact that he never aged. Meanwhile, I was experiencing the same thing in the Black Mage Village, yet so were all of my peers. I found it abnormal that the Black Mages were dying, or 'stopping' as they called it. I didn't understand that that was what organisms on Gaia were 'supposed' to do.

"Zidane and I weren't reunited until almost one hundred and fifty years later, after his wife had died and he had been exiled. Together we pieced together many things. What made us different? Why couldn't we die? And we found it out."

Mikoto paused and looked at Ryuu to make sure he was listening. His eyes were fixed on the corner of the room and he looked as if he was contemplating something very important. The Genome sighed and tapped him on the chest.

Looking startled, he glanced back down at her. "I'm listening, I promise."

"I know you're listening. But do you believe me?"

"It's hard to, but then again it's hard not to. Your story fits perfectly into what I learned in my history class. Finish telling it."

"There is a porthole that appeared over the site of the Iifa Tree called Memoria. This place was constructed out of Zidane's memories. We had one clue, and that was that the truth lied in Memoria. Therefore the two of us flew there. I was supposed to wait in the airship while he went in, but I was far too stubborn to listen. I snuck in behind him.

"This place was absolutely dripping with Garland's spirit. We could hear him talking to us, even though he was definitely deceased. I continued to sneak around behind Zidane, trying not to give away my position, and I was listening into what Garland had to say.

"He said a bunch of things that didn't make much sense, but then something that did. We couldn't die until we'd completed our purpose. 'Everyone has a purpose,' he said to us, 'And no one is able to die until that purpose has been completed.' So of course, Zidane, desperate, asked him what his purpose was.

" 'Destroy Gaia' is what Garland said. Of course Zidane wouldn't destroy Gaia after he fought so hard to protect it. But Garland continued to try to soothe over his mind, manipulate him into doing it anyway. He told him things like, 'They think you're a freak anyway', and 'Why not kill them?' or 'What more do you have to lose?'. Zidane still refused.

"Garland then told him that there was no other way for him, if he wanted to die he'd have to destroy the world. Then he paused for a second before saying, 'One angel of death can kill another, but the purpose is passed down.' I took this to heart, even though the thought of losing my only connection to the world was very upsetting to me. One night while he was sleeping, I came in and gave him an injection of Malboro poison. He didn't suffer long, and he thanked me in his last words for doing him the favor. But since then I have been alone.

"His purpose was passed on to me. I was Garland's last hope for succeeding in transferring life back to Terra, therefore he did everything in his power to make sure that I succeeded. He gave me the ability to Trance and named my attack 'Kamikaze'. If set it off, I will blow up and take everything with me.

"I'm Garland's last resort. He didn't even want to make me, he was so sure that Zidane would do it. Zidane this and Zidane that, you should read his lab notes. Because I wasn't as important, I still can't die, but instead of my healing powers being instant, like Zidane's, it takes more time for a full recovery, and I can still feel pain. You can tell that he never really anticipated ever really using me…"

She stopped, wiping the tears from her eyes. She had basically finished telling her story. Everything was now out on the table and now it was up to Ryuu to decide whether or not he was going to believe it.

The anticipation was making her sick and now that she was sobbing didn't help make her feel any better. She was sure that Ryuu was going to deny her all that he had once shown her, spit on her, and abandon her. But instead she felt him pull her into a gentle and warm embrace, his nose buried deep into her thick blond hair

"But you know what?" he said softly into her hair. "I'm awful glad that Garland decided to make a last resort." She turned to look at him, her eyes brimming with tears, and Ryuu merely rubbed them away with his thumb, smiling sadly.

As always, the sun rose the next morning, and as it peeked over the small town outside of Treno, it spread its rays of light through every facet that it could. The morning light made its way through the several cracks in the Tavern's shutters, resting warm upon the inhabitants.

Mikoto stirred at the sudden presence of light. Ever so slowly her eyes fluttered open and she breathed in the smell of Ryuu's cologne, mixed with the sweet smell of lilacs just outside the window. Stretching her arms up over her head, she rolled over and to her surprise found the other side of the bed empty. Alarmed, Mikoto shot up and looked desperately around the room. There was no sign of the brown haired boy anywhere.

Despite the fact that her legs were still sore from the previous night, she got up and immediately was hit with a wave of dizziness. Holding her head, as if to keep herself from passing out, she stumbled into the attached bathroom. She leaned against the wall for support and saw only her ruined jeans swimming in a tub of tinted red water.

Feeling more vulnerable than ever, the upset Genome managed to stumble back into the main room and find a robe hanging in the closet. She tied it around herself and ran downstairs to the bar area. Already townspeople were gathering for a few drinks, despite the hour of the day. She pushed her way through them, looking around desperately for Ryuu's familiar face.

"Have you seen a boy? Around seventeen, he has brown hair…" she would ask the bar-goers if they looked sober enough to be coherent. Most just shook their heads or said they hadn't seen him since the previous night.

Finally, the Genome ran into the woman who owned the Tavern. "Excuse me, ma'am…have you seen Ryuu? The man I came here with last night…"

"Aye! N' good murnin' to ya, lassie! Don't yee look a lot better'n yee did last night. Yee looked tarrible, yee did. Good ta see ya up an' walkin' 'bout."

"Thank you very much, ma'am, but please. I am looking for my…" she stopped and thought for a moment. "…husband," she finally lied.

"Aye, that strong young lad tha' carried yee in last night, I kin…" she said slowly. "I saw 'im not too long ago… Said 'e was goin' somewhare, 'e did."

At that moment in time, Mikoto's heart felt as if it filled up with a substance heavier than lead and dropped into her gut. "Oh…th-thank…you…" she said, looking down at the aged hardwood floor.

"Don't warry, lassie. If 'es your 'usband, I reckon 'e'll be comin' back for yee."

Mikoto nodded and slowly walked back to the stairs that lead up to their room. Each step creaked maliciously as she progressed up the staircase, which only seemed to grow as her worry deepened.

Emotionally exhausted, Mikoto threw open the door of the room and ran in, falling face-first onto the bed. More than anything she wanted to be strong and not cry, but she still felt the sting as tears gathered in her eyes.

"There you are!" she heard Ryuu's voice exclaim. "I swear, Mikoto, I leave for two seconds and you disappear all together!" he laughed.

She lifted her head to see him standing in the bathroom doorway, a tray full of food in his hand. "I left to get us some breakfast…but it's cold now," he laughed again, then sat on the bed beside her, showing off the tray of food, which included pancakes, soggy with syrup from the long wait.

Sheepishly, Mikoto tried to wipe the embarrassing tears from her eyes. "Thanks, but I'm not hungry," she said quietly as she sat up.

"So I got it for nothing? And I waited for you to come back, allowing it to get cold in the process, and now you're not going to eat it?" he pretended to be stunned, then he shrugged and sat the tray down on a table in the room. "Oh well, I'm not all too hungry myself. We need to leave soon anyway. How are your legs?"

"Sore, but I'll be fine," Mikoto replied. "But Ryuu…what are we going to wear into Treno?"

"I soaked our clothes from yesterday overnight. They're not the cleanest that they could be…but they're better than nothing. They will be fine until we get to Treno and we can buy new clothes, right?"

"…Right…" she said slowly. She was still unsure, but Ryuu's smile seemed to erase all doubt from her mind. "Your clothes are waiting for you in the bathroom. Get changed and then we can leave"

Mikoto nodded and walked into the bathroom, peering over her shoulder at him, as inconspicuously as possible. She felt silly doing so, but the last thing she wanted was for her worst fear to become reality. She couldn't imagine being betrayed or abandoned by Ryuu.

Sure enough, resting on the toilet seat was a pair of her ruined jeans as well as her just as ruined shirt from the previous night. Both were folded and still damp.

After pulling her tattered and stained clothes on, Mikoto peered through the crack between the door and its frame to see Ryuu sitting on the bed, playing absent mindedly with a lose thread in his shirt. She couldn't help but smile, then she went back to getting ready. She peered at herself in the mirror, ran her fingers through her short blond hair and with a sigh walked back out into the main room.

"Well don't you just look lovely," Ryuu smiled with a wink. His clothes, though not as torn, were still muddy and his shirt had quite large unmistakable bloodstains from where he had carried Mikoto.

"Are you going to need me to carry you today?" he joked as he threw his arm over her shoulder and they walked out of the room.

"Well, this is the Treno Mansion," Mikoto announced, when the two weary travelers had finally reached their destination. Ryuu stared in awe at the spectacular architecture that stood in front of him. "My brother designed it himself."

"Which one?" he asked as he studied the gothic style gargoyles staring down at him.

"Kuja," she smiled, "If you knew him you'd be able to tell that he designed it in a heartbeat."

"Why is your house glowing?" Ryuu asked upon further observation of the building.

"It's a spell to protect it. For such a beautiful building, he wasn't thinking of the location when he built it, and building it so close to the slums has its consequences. So Kuja put a very strong protect spell over it to preserve it."

The wrought-iron fence groaned as Mikoto pushed it open. Upon approaching the door, Mikoto realized that she didn't have her keys on her. "Cover me really quick," she whispered over her shoulder.

Ryuu did as he was asked.

Mikoto pointed a single finger at the doorknob and muttered a spell. A tiny beam of bright yellow light emanated from her fingertip and went into the keyhole. There was an unmistakable chinking sound as the door unlocked itself and swung open.

"Mistress Mikoto! You're back, kupo!" Moogerz exclaimed from the top stair.

Its counterpart, Mogzika soon accompanied it. "We tried to keep the mansion clean, kupo, but it has a mind of its own!"

"At least it's not as dirty as it was the last time I left you two alone in it for a long period of time," Mikoto said jokingly. She moved through the foyer and Ryuu followed her in.

The two moogles, who had been making their way down the stairs stopped momentarily and exchanged confused glances.

"This is Ryuu," Mikoto said, motioning to him. "He will be staying with us."

"A human? Ick!" Mogzika exclaimed, sticking her tongue out.

"Yes, he's a human," Mikoto announced with a smile, "Will you two start cleaning out the spare bedroom so that he doesn't have to sleep on a mound of dust?"

"Dust is comfortable, kupo," Moogerz whined. But without saying anything else, the two moogles flew upstairs to do as they were told.

"How come your moogles are perfectly functional and the one I have at my place is a total loon?" Ryuu laughed as he watched the creatures' retreating figures.

"Just lucky I guess," Mikoto shrugged. Then, putting a finger to her lip, she picked up the phone and dialed Kashiya's number.

The phone rang and rang, and then finally someone picked up.

"Hello?" it was Kashiya and she sounded very frustrated.

"Hey, Kash, it's me, Mikoto…"

At this the woman sounded a bit surprised, "Oh! Mikoto! Hi!"

"Hi, look, I'm just calling you to let you know that we made it to the mansion and we're safe."

"You're never completely safe in Treno. You have no idea how worried I'm going to be."

"I have an idea…judging by how paranoid you sound right now."

"Are your walls sturdy? Where is this mansion located?"

"You can rest assured that this building is impenetrable."

Kashiya was quiet for a while, then finally she sighed and said. "Okay. Call me and let me know if you need me, okay?"

"We will. You and Seth are welcome to come and visit once we get settled in."

"Well you just let us know when then."

"Alright, bye Kashiya."

"Bye."

Mikoto hung up the phone and then smiled at Ryuu. "So, are you ready for the tour?"

"I'm going to need one," he laughed. "I think I might get lost coming downstairs for breakfast!"

Mikoto led him upstairs and down a long hallway. "This is the storage room," she said, holding the door open so that he could look in. "It's a mess, the moogles and I tried cleaning it earlier this year and were unsuccessful."

"That's amazing," Ryuu breathed, looking at all of the weapons, armor and various add-ons on display everywhere. "Where did you come across all of these?"

"A lot of them belonged to my brother and his friends. As a matter of fact, I believe they all did."

She took him into the next room, "This is my room," she said leading him in. "Nothing too interesting in h-"

"Aw! You have a teddy bear!" Ryuu exclaimed, taking an old and worn teddy bear off of her shelf.

"Actually, it's not mine."

"Whose is it then?"

"Zidane's eldest daughter's, Amethyst. It was her bear when she was little."

Mikoto took the bear from Ryuu and looked at it affectionately, stroking its soft brown coat. One of its button eyes had fallen out and a seam was coming undone on its belly. "I keep him in here for nostalgic reasons. As a matter of fact, almost everything I keep in here is in memory of someone else."

"Oh…" Ryuu said looking at his feet.

Gingerly, Mikoto replaced the bear on its shelf and led Ryuu away from her room.

She continued to take Ryuu on the tour, getting him acquainted with the different rooms of the house and the history of some of her belongings. She ended the tour of the top floor up with Zidane's room, the room that Ryuu would inhabit. Apart from many photographs and broadway posters, the room was very plain. The bedspread had been a solid white at one point, but had yellowed due to age and lack of use.

Ryuu began to walk around the room, as if observing every facet. Recording everything that he was seeing into his memory. Mikoto watched as he walked around the room, "We'll wash the bed sheets for you of course…" she said as he circled the bed, like a bird of prey.

Finally he looked at her and smiled the biggest he had in a long time. "I love it."

She smiled back at him and led him back down the stairs. Just as she was getting ready to initiate the tour of the second floor, the sound of a very loud crash interrupted her. Both she and Ryuu traded worried glances and ran to the where the sound had come from, the basement.

Immediately when Mikoto opened the door that led to the basement, the smell of rotting wood and stale air came to her nose, the Genome turned her head and coughed. "I can't even remember the last time I had to go into the basement here!" she said.

Still coughing, she used a fire spell to light a torch hanging on the wall, then carried it down with her. Ryuu followed close behind her. Upon reaching the bottom of the stairs she heard a sound that made her blood freeze, a low growl.

She turned to look at Ryuu, and in the flickering light of the torch she could see that he was just a terrified as she. "I don't know…maybe we shouldn't go any further…" she said, her heart pounding.

Just as she said that, she saw something that rooted her to her spot. At that point, it didn't matter how much she wanted to run back up the stairs, her legs simply wouldn't move. Two yellow slitted eyes were peering at them, and that low growling sound became more prominent.

"Mikoto…do you have a monster living in your basement?" Ryuu asked, sounding remarkably calm for someone who seemed to be at his breaking point.

The Genome shook all doubt from her body and willed herself to take a few steps toward those eyes, waving the torch at them. "Hah! Hah!" she yelled, as if threatening it to move back. Still those eyes merely peered at her, as if daring her to continue forward.

Finally, the light managed to hit the owner of those eyes and Mikoto gave a giant sigh of relief. Ryuu on the other hand felt as if he could've passed out. After all, not many city boys could say that they've come face to face with a silver dragon before.

"It's only Kirai…" Mikoto sighed, clutching her chest.

"Right…Kirai…just Kirai…" Ryuu stuttered, "Who the hell is Kirai?"

Ever so slowly the Genome reached her hand forward. The dragon snapped at the gesture, but Mikoto managed to pull her hand away fast so that it missed. She tried again. This time the dragon sniffed her hand. Almost immediately there was a noticeable change in the creature's eyes.

"We need to get him some food…" Mikoto announced.

"Mikoto, I don't think you have people food in this house, let alone dragon food."

"We need to go to the store anyway, don't we?"

Ryuu laughed and shook his head. What a day it was turning out to be.

"So…who's Kirai?" Ryuu asked as the two walked back up the stairs.

"An old friend of Kuja's. As a matter of fact, Kirai was Kuja's only friend for a very long time." When they reached the top of the stairs again, Mikoto drenched the torch with a water spell and placed it back where she had found it.

Ryuu shivered as he looked down the long wooden stairway at the two yellow eyes staring up at him. He laughed nervously, gulped, and began to pull on the collar of his shirt. "That thing's going to kill me in my sleep…" he thought aloud.

A week passed and Mikoto and Ryuu were busy adapting to their new lives in the Treno mansion. Across the street from the mansion there was a construction site, a new apartment complex was going in. Luckily as the noble funding the build was in dire need of workers, and Ryuu was in dire need of a job, the teenager's job search didn't take long.

Every day he left for work fairly early in the morning and would return in the late afternoon, typically around five. Mikoto spent her days either at the auction house or cleaning up the mansion, with the not-so-helpful "help" of the two moogles who inhabited the building.

One morning in particular Mikoto awoke and jumped out of bed. She always liked being awake before Ryuu left, not to mention she needed to get Ryuu out of bed, otherwise he never had a prayer of getting to work on time, even if it was right across the street.

Quickly, she dressed, brushed her hair, and walked down the dark hall to Zidane's old room. The door squeaked as it opened, and she looked in on his sleeping figure and couldn't help but smile. He had the most child-like face when he slept. When she realized that she was staring, she blushed and quickly turned on the light in the room.

Ryuu flinched and opened one of his eyes. "Time to get up," she cooed at him.

He muttered something incoherent and rolled over.

"Yup," she smiled crossing her arms. "Time for you to go bring home the bacon."

"You bring home the bacon…I bring home the fun money."

"Nonetheless…" she laughed.

Ryuu groaned again and pulled the covers over his head. "Come on…" Mikoto sighed. She walked over to the bed and attempted to pull the sheets away from him. "If you get up, I might make muffins…" she bribed.

Suddenly Ryuu's hand shot out from under the comforter and pulled her down onto the bed. "Did I hear you say muffins?" he asked, and she could hear the smile in his voice.

"You sure did."

"That's incentive enough. All right, I'm getting up."

"Good," she patted his chest and pulled herself up from the bed. "Sounds like I'm making muffins now."

She left his room and walked down the spiralling staircase. On her way down she almost stepped directly onto Moogerz, who had been sleeping curled into a ball on one of the stairs.

"Kupooo!" the moogle exclaimed, "You could warn a moogle before you come parading down the stairs, ya know, kupo!"

"Sorry Moogerz," Mikoto blushed, and hurried into the kitchen.

"Where are you going in such a hurry?"

"I'm making muffins," Mikoto announced over her shoulder.

"Oh! Kupo! I wanna help!"

"Can we put Kupo Nuts in a batch?" another voice inquired. Mogzika came flying around a corner.

"I guess," Mikoto sighed.

"Kupopo!" both the moogles exclaimed together.

"Come on and help me make them then!"

The moogles followed after the Genome in an excited frenzy.

A while later Ryuu came down the stairs, wearing a simple pair of jeans and a white tee shirt. Mikoto was just sitting down at the table when he sneaked up behind her.

"Guess what!" he asked as he snatched her around the waist.

"What? You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"Not possible," he beamed at her.

Mikoto pretended to glower at him, then asked, "What?" again.

"Kashiya and Seth are coming to visit."

"When?"

"Today!"

Mikoto fell silent for a moment. She wasn't sure of what she could say, so Ryuu only continued. "Seth and I have been keeping in contact with each other, and I told them that they should come up once we were all moved in."

Mikoto was still speechless.

"You don't want them to come over?" Ryuu asked.

"No, it's not that…"

"Then what? You love Kashiya, it'll be fun."

"Okay…" Mikoto smiled weakly. She wasn't sure why she was so upset at the fact that they were coming over. _You're just being silly,_ she told herself.

"Guess I'll have to really hurry up on this whole cleaning project," Mikoto sighed.

"The mansion is looking great. You're doing a wonderful job."

"Thanks."

"What all really needs to be cleaned?"

"The basement. I haven't even started on it," Mikoto groaned.

"You're actually going down there with that _thing_?"

"It's just a dragon, Ryuu, honestly. And he's tame."

"He's terrifying, that's what he is."

"Regardless, I need to clean out the basement."

"Why? No one will go down there."

"They might. Not to mention I don't think I've ever even been down in the basement. Don't know what I might find."

"Oh, well from the sounds of it, you might want to take your daggers with you when you go down."

"I'll be careful," she promised with a wink. "So what time are Kashiya and Seth coming over, exactly?"

"They left this morning, so they'll be here around two."

"Two?" Mikoto exclaimed.

"Is that a problem?"

"You could've told me sooner, I'll never have time to get the guestrooms ready!"

"Don't worry about the guestrooms," he said with a wink. "They can stay in my room."

"Where are you going to sleep?" He didn't answer, but flashed her one of his characteristic smiles. "Ryuu!" she laughed.

Dramatically, the brunette dipped Mikoto and was preparing to kiss her when the moogles began making as much noise as possible. "The muffins are going to burn! The muffins are going to burn!" they exclaimed.

Still laughing, Mikoto stood up and walked to the oven. The smell of the muffins had already spread across the entire kitchen, thus making it smell wonderful. She pulled the pans of muffins out and sat them on the stove.

"Getting a bit fresh with Miki, aren't you?" Mogzika asked Ryuu with narrowed eyes.

"Hey!" both Mikoto and Ryuu said at the same time. They locked eyes and laughed all over again.

"Take your muffins and get to work," Mikoto finally managed to say. Her sides were beginning to ache from all of the laughter. Ryuu chuckled, and grabbed three muffins and ran out of the door.

"As for you two…" Mikoto said, trying to regain her composure. "You're coming with me."

"Where are we going?" Moogerz asked.

Mikoto strapped her dagger sheathes to her belt, and scarfed down a few muffins. "The basement," the Genome smiled.

"No!" the two moogles exclaimed in unison. "There's a monster down there, kupo!"

The Genome sighed, "But I'd like to have some help down there." For a few seconds she thought, then she came up with something. "I have an idea! Come with me!"

Rather reluctantly, the moogles followed Mikoto up the stairs and into the storage room. "Let's see here…" the Genome mumbled as she looked through all of the armor there was to offer. "The closest armor I can find in your size would be Eiko's…I wonder if she took her things after the group split?"

She continued to rummage through the piles of armor and then finally found two small coats of mythril armor, as well as some simple daggers in which the moogles were able to brandish as swords. As the two moogles studied themselves in the mirror, Mikoto looked at them with a big smile. "Feel a little more safe?"

The moogles traded nervous glances, but didn't say anything. "Come on you two, I'm going to need some help. I can't clean the entire basement on my own."

"Get Ryuu to help you!" Moogerz complained.

With a sigh, Mikoto looked at them pleadingly.

"Gah! Okay…" the two creatures replied, looking at the floor.

"I won't let you get hurt. Or eaten," she winked.

Very slowly, the moogles followed her to the basement door. Upon opening the door, Mikoto lit the torch once again with a fire spell and descended the staircase, lighting torches as she passed them with the one she carried. Behind her she heard the frantic flutter of wings as the moogles followed her, as well as their hushed conversation.

"Where is that white demon?" she heard one of the moogles whisper.

"Are you talking about Kirai?" she asked, looking over her shoulder.

"Whatever that monster is."

Mikoto shrugged. "He could be out hunting, or he could be hiding, just waiting for a tender little morsel like yourself to walk unsuspecting around a corner…"

"MIKOTO!" the moogles yelled at once.

"I'm just kidding," she chuckled.

Mikoto continued down the stairway, chuckling to herself. Upon reaching the bottom of the stairwell she looked around. The darkness was so thick that even the several torches illuminating the stairway didn't extend into the vast recesses of the basement. "It's so gloomy down here…" Mikoto said quietly, lighting more torches. Finally it was bright enough for her to see what she had to work with, and it astonished her.

"Where are we supposed to start, kupo?" Moogerz asked.

Mikoto merely looked around and then sighed, "This is going to be a lot tougher than I first imagined." She blew some of her bangs out of her face and dropped her bag on the ground. "What's in all of these boxes?" she thought aloud.

The moogles looked at each other and back at her, then shrugged. "What would Kuja keep in his basement?" she continued to ponder.

"I don't know, kupo, but I'm getting a bad feeling," Mogzika said with a shiver.

Using her dagger, Mikoto pried open the crate nearest to her. There was a horrible stench, like something she had never smelled before emanating from inside of it. After struggling she managed to pry open part of the box, and smell got a lot stronger. "Ungh!" she gasped and immediately covered her nose with the back of her hand.

"What is it?" the moogles asked together.

"I don't know yet, but it smells terrible."

"Are you sure you want to open it?"

"I want to know what's in it!"

"Curiosity killed the cat! Kupopo!"

"But I'm afraid it won't be able to kill me," she answered under her breath.

Holding her breath, she wrenched open the lid of the crate and was startled to see a pair of dim yellow eyes staring up at her, unblinkingly. She shrieked and accidentally knocked over the entire crate. Gasping to catch her breath and clutching her chest she stared in horror at the motionless Black Mage lying facedown on the floor.

The moogles both squealed and darted behind a barrel.

Once she had calmed down, Mikoto sat down on the floor, still clutching her chest. "It's not activated," she announced just loud enough so that the moogles would come out of hiding. She stood back up and walked next to the lifeless figure, prodding it gently with her foot. "As a matter of fact…I don't think it can be."

"Why not, kupo?"

"It's been over two hundred years since it was produced," she stated matter-of-factly. "Help me put it back in its crate."

The moogles merely stared at the Genome as she struggled to put the Black Mage away. As she attempted to pick it up its eyes suddenly lit up to a brighter yellow. The Genome gasped and dropped the mage in her shock. Upon hitting the floor, its yellow eyes dimmed again, and what 'life' it had had was gone.

"Why would he have mages stored in his basement?" Mikoto asked herself. Worriedly, she looked at the moogles and motioned for them to help her pick up the 'stopped' Black Mage. As carefully as they could, the three of them placed it back into its crate. "How are we going to get rid of them?" she muttered, lifting her sweaty hair off of her neck.

The moogles merely looked at her. "If I had an airship I could load them onto it and bury them outside of the old Black Mage Village…but I don't…"

"The best place to buy them is Lindblum, kupo!" Moogerz stated.

"Yeah, too bad I can't go back, hm?" she sighed.

After moving all of the crates against the wall and straightening up what they could, they moved further into the basement. Carrying a torch with her, Mikoto opened the heavy wooden door that led to the next room, she was astonished to find that it was a long and narrow hallway, covered in about a centimeter of water.

Each of the moogles grabbed onto one of Mikoto's pant legs and followed closely behind her as they all sloshed their way across. "There are only so many places for that demon to hide…kupopo…" Mogzika said shakily.

"I don't know where he is…" Mikoto admitted. But in all honesty, she had other things on her mind. The hall that they just so happened to be venturing down gave her an odd feeling. She wasn't sure what it was, but she didn't like it.

The moogles were conversing frantically with each other behind the Genome, but she could no longer hear what they were saying. The world seemed to be on mute, and she was starting to feel dizzy. Memories from those dreams nestled their way into her mind and began to play tricks on her.

She stopped walking all together, causing both moogles to run directly into the back of her knees. "Why'd you stop walkin', kupo?"

"Yeah, you're the one who wanted to come down here, kupopo!"

Mikoto couldn't hear them, however. Even though she was staring down the hallway, directly at the last door, everything seemed fuzzy around the edges. Eventually, darkness overtook her senses and with a small splash she fell to the floor, passed out cold.

"Mikoto? Mikoto!" the moogles yelled in unison, but the Genome did not answer.

"Moogerz! Go get Ryuu!" Mogzika said quickly as she fanned Mikoto with one of her pink paws.

Ryuu was shingling the roof of a house when he saw a pink blur flying frantically toward him. He squinted his eyes and once he realized that it was one of the moogles, he knew that there was something wrong.

"What's wrong, Moogerz?" he asked the approaching pink fuzz ball.

"It's Mikoto!" the moogle said quickly.

Ryuu looked at the creature in confusion. "What's wrong?"

Several of the construction workers turned to listen in on the conversation.

"Hey, Ryuu! No pets allowed at the construction site!" Ryuu's boss barked at him. At this comment Moogerz seemed offended but said nothing.

"Sorry Mr. Hamilton," Ryuu blushed. "Moogerz, what's wrong?" he asked hurriedly.

"Mikoto! She fell! Kupo! She passed out in the basement!"

"She what?"

"Fainted!"

Worriedly, he looked his boss in the face. "I'm sorry Mr. Hamilton," he explained quickly. "My girlfriend is ill, I'm going to take my lunch break early."

"I want an explanation!"

"I'll explain it all when I get back," he said as he threw off his construction hat. Hurriedly, he jumped down the ladder and ran across the street to the Treno Mansion.

"Moogerz, you're going to have to lead me to her! Where's she pass out?"

"Down here, kupo!" the moogle exclaimed breathlessly, as she flew down the staircase. Ryuu followed after the creature relentlessly, and by the light of the torches he saw Mikoto just beyond the open door. She had fallen in a heap in the center of the hallway, Mogzika was still right next to her.

"Mikoto!" he exclaimed upon seeing her. Without hardly thinking, he ran into the hallway, splashing up water as his work boots smacked against the cement floor. After he finally reached her, he scooped her up into his arms and carried her back upstairs.

As he passed by the old grandfather clock in the living room he noticed that it was almost one thirty. "Kashiya and Seth will be here anytime soon…" he said to the moogles as they ascended the staircase. "Kash will know what to do with her…"

She was running through catacombs, and there was no light except for a faint blue glow. Where it came from, Mikoto had no idea. There were no torches, no candles, no source of light whatsoever, just a perpetual blue glow. Although her legs were tired and she was panting uncontrollably, she was being driven farther and farther along by some unknown force.

**_'What do you think you're doing?' a venomous voice echoed against the walls of her consciousness. _**

**_'I don't know,' she said, tears springing to her eyes._**

**_'Why even try? It's futile!'_**

**_'I have to! I promised him!'_**

**_The cave went on and on; there didn't seem to be an end. Still she continued to run on. _**

**_'Go on, come with me,' Garland said teasingly, 'End your suffering, end your miserable struggle.'_**

**_She closed her eyes and ran on, all the while Garland's poisonous words echoed through the caves. _**

**_'You're weak, you'll give in anyway. Why not now? Why wait until you're hurt? Why wait until he dies? Why make yourself suffer?'_**

**_Mikoto wiped the tears from her eyes and ran on. The end of the cave was near! She could see it! Out of breath she came to the end, there was an intersection. Three paths that she could go down. But which one should she chose?_**

**_Panting for breath, Mikoto approached the first of three. There was someone inside there. She walked a little farther and the mystery person turned around. It was Garland. He grabbed her by the wrist. 'Just do it! Do you really expect to just live forever? Do you really think you're that strong? I'm going to win, it's inevitable! Why postpone fate?'_**

**_'No! I promised him! I can't!' she sobbed, trying with all her might to wrestle her arm away from him. For as thin and frail as he appeared, his grip was as strong as steel. She reached down and finally managed to pry his fingers away from her wrist. _**

**_'It's fate!' his words followed her as she ran into the next cave._**

**_She was too busy looking over her shoulder, she couldn't see what lie in front of her, that is until she ran into it. She fell back, but was astonished to see a pale hand help her up. Her eyes went in and out of focus, and finally she was able to see clearly. The image brought tears to her eyes. She reached up and as if to reassure her that it was really him, and stroked his long silver hair. _**

**_'Mikoto…' he said quietly, his voice smooth as running water._**

**_'Kuja?'_**

**_Her eldest brother smiled at her sadly. 'Mikoto, you do whatever makes you happy. If that means loving this stranger, then love him with all your might. Don't go halfway. Your life is up to you, no one else. Don't let ANYONE else dictate what you do, be it Garland or Zidane.'_**

**_'But…' she shook her head and slowly backed away. 'I promised him.'_**

**_'Are you happy with the promise you made? Don't you think that promise was a bit extreme?'_**

**_'I am going to keep my word!' she exclaimed._**

**_Kuja touched her cheek lovingly, 'I want you to be happy. Not temporarily happy, I want you to be genuinely happy.'_**

**_Eyes brimming with tears, she backed away, sobbing uncontrollably. 'I can't break my promise to him!' she threw her arms down and screamed at the silver haired Genome. 'He deserves more than that! He trusted me with the fate of the world! I won't go back on my word, not without a fight!'_**

**_Kuja extended an arm to her, but she pushed it away, and ran back to the intersection of caves. There was only one left. Eyes closed, she ran down it, not sure if she could take whatever was waiting for her. She ran into something, but instead of falling she was met with an embrace. A strong embrace like one she could reca, from so long ago._**

**_She looked up and noted that without a doubt, it was indeed Zidane. Sobbing uncontrollably she buried her head into his shoulder, and Zidane just silently stroked her hair. Gently he rocked her until her tears stopped._**

**_'Mikoto,' his soft voice said into her ear, 'We worked so long and so hard to protect Gaia. I'm not asking you to live forever miserably. But there has got to be another way. There has to be a way out, a loophole. You're smarter than you think, you can figure it out. But whatever it is, protect the planet at all costs. You now know what it is to love, and to want to protect that love. Protect the world for your descendants, my descendants. We aren't going to let Garland win! Not after fighting him this long!'_**

**_Zidane was so impassioned as he spoke. 'I promised you I won't let him win…' she sniffed. _**

**_'I know. But even if you can't, I just want you to know that I won't hold it against you. It's unfair for me to expect so much of you.'_**

**_Ever so gently, Zidane dried her eyes with one of his gloved hands and smiled reassuringly. _**

**_'Mikoto…' someone said from behind her. _**

**_Not wanting to look away from Zidane, she turned to see Ryuu. He was standing there, looking around confusedly. When they met eyes he smiled at her. 'What it all comes down to is…you need to chose your own path.'_**

**_Smiling sadly, Ryuu grabbed her by the shoulders and led her back to the intersection. 'But…' tears collected in her eyes once again, 'I don't want to make this decision alone!'_**

**_'It's your life, it's your ultimate decision.'_**

**_Almost blinded by her tears, Mikoto reached out to touch Ryuu, but he disappeared into a blinding flash of light. She looked at the three caves, and slowly the three figures immerged from each cave._**

**_'It's inevitable…'_**

**_'…want you to be happy…'_**

**_'Don't let him win…'_**

**_'I don't want to make the decision!' she cried, collapsing in the intersection. 'I don't want to have to make it! Don't tell me that!' _**

By the time Mikoto awoke, she had an awful headache and was amazed to see Kashiya's familiar figure hovering over her. "She lives," she smiled. "I was starting to worry. You were crying in your sleep, but you wouldn't wake up. Either you're a heavy sleeper, or you were comatose."

"Kashiya…what happened?" Mikoto asked, grasping her hair and pulling it back.

"I can't say I know exactly. Ryuu said that one of the moogles came to get him at work because you passed out. Seth and I got here about ten minutes after he found you passed out in the basement."

"What?"

"You fainted while you were cleaning the basement according to Ryuu. Mik, you know you don't have to clean for us. Don't strain yourself, especially if you aren't feeling good."

"Why am I all wet?"

"Well, like I said, you were crying and sweating like crazy in your sleep, not to mention you passed out in about a centimeter of water."

Clutching her head, Mikoto tried to stand up. She felt a little wobbly, but with Kashiya's added help managed to stand. "I need something to eat," the Genome finally said.

Kashiya laughed. "Now there's the Mikoto we know and love!"

"Where'd Ryuu and Seth go anyway?"

They just left not too long before you woke up. Ryuu went to show him the building he's working on or something like that.

"How long was I asleep?"

"Well…it's almost seven…"

"FIVE HOURS?" Mikoto sputtered.

"Eh, don't worry about it. Come on! Let's go make the boys some dinner!"

Mikoto nodded, "Y-yeah…okay, just let me get cleaned up."

Kashiya ran down the stairs. "Okay, I'll scrounge and start on something!"

The Genome showered very quickly and put on some comfortable clothes. _I don't think I'll be going to back down into the basement anytime soon,_ she thought to herself. When she had gotten all cleaned up, she ran down the spiral staircase and found Kashiya busy in the kitchen.

"What'd you find?" Mikoto smiled as she peered over Kashiya's shoulder.

"Chicken, potatoes and salad," the medic replied, surely enough she was busy mashing potatoes.

"And the chicken is already in the oven?" Mikoto said upon turning on the oven light. "You're really on top of things!"

"Come on, you can help me cut up veggies for the salad," Kashiya said pulling out two knives and a head of lettuce, some tomatoes, cucumbers, and green onions. "Do you have a cutting board?"

"Yeah, somewhere." Mikoto dug around in one of the kitchen drawers and finally brandished a cutting board.

Kashiya began cutting up the tomatoes in silence, all the while thinking to herself. Mikoto was either the luckiest girl ever, or something else. Kashiya had done research, quite a bit of research, and she had a few hunches. Something told her that there was something going on with Mikoto that the girl had no intention of ever telling the medic.

She survived a public burning, a severe motorcycle accident, not to mention she was extremely familiar with games and customs that were common two hundred years ago.

While all of these thoughts floated through Kashiya's head, she turned to look at the busy genome. "Mikoto, come here really quick, I want to give you something."

The blond turned from the stove to look at Kashiya. "What is it?" she asked, holding her hand out.

Quickly, so that she wouldn't lose her nerve, Kashiya picked up the knife and slit Mikoto's palm before the Genome could do so much as pull her hand out of the medic's grasp.

Mikoto immediately covered the open wound with a nearby washcloth. "Let me see it!" Kashiya demanded. Eyes full of confusion, Mikoto pulled away from Kashiya, the older woman however was not going to take that and instead reached across the counter and grabbed Mikoto's wrist. She forced the rag away from her palm and stared in amazement as the wound slowly, but surely, closed itself up. What little blood that was present resided on the rag. In utter disbelief, Kashiya threw the rag into the sink and slunk back to lean against the counter.

"Why would you do that?" Mikoto cried, feeling horribly betrayed.

"Okay, Mikoto," Kashiya said, looking at her with a new sense of knowledge. "Don't lie to me. Your brother was King Zidane of Alexandria about two hundred years ago. That's why you have a tail; you are a direct bloodline to the Alexandrian throne! Zidane married into the royal family by marrying the Princess Garnet til Alexandros 17th. He survived not only an airship wreck, but an assassination attempt. He was ultimately exiled from Alexandria in about his sixtieth year of rule by his own people because he still appeared to be a teenager. His own people thought he was a practitioner of black magic. His daughter, Amethyst assumed the throne after he was forced out of his country. No word was heard of him until about twenty years ago when his sister, who coincidentally looked just like a female version of him, brought his dead body to King Alexander for a proper burial."

"K-Kashiya! You're crazy!" Mikoto exclaimed.

"No! I'm not!" the medic yelled back. "I've suspected something like this all along, and now I know it to be true!" Kashiya dug around in her purse before displaying a newspaper clipping. Sure enough in the crumpled photo in the center, brown due to age, was Mikoto kneeling at Zidane's gravesite.

"Wh-Where'd you g-get that?" Mikoto stammered, trying to snatch it.

"The library," Kashiya answered simply.

Mikoto felt as if she could cry. "Ryuu already knows, Kash, please don't tell anyone. Zidane was thought a freak and a threat. I'm already considered a threat in Lindblum, and I won't get to go back until it's died down enough that it would be safe."

"I won't tell, but why'd you keep it from me? I thought we were good enough friends to be honest with each other."

"It's not something that would typically be accepted so easily."

"You're living in the middle of Treno! People are bound to notice!"

"I realize that. But we've already discussed it. We won't be staying here long. I have another house far away from any civilization. I just need an airship to get there."

"An airship huh?" Kashiya smiled and wrapped an arm around the Genome's neck. "There we can help you."

A/N: That's all folks!


	13. Bohemian Rhapsody

Chapter 13: Bohemian Rhapsody

"_I have an idea of how to get you to your other house. But it may take a while to get it into action."_

_"We don't have much time…"_

_"If you can come up with something better, then let us know, by all means. But just in case, I have a plan."_

Mikoto thought back to the last conversation she had held with her closest female friend. She and Ryuu needed a way out of Treno, and Kashiya claimed she and Seth could get it for them. The only problem was it had been a month since the promise had been made, and she still hadn't heard a thing from either the medic or the mechanic.

The Genome trudged through the slums of Treno, paying no attention to her surroundings. In one hand she carried a bag of groceries and everyday grooming items and the other was resting nonchalantly on her dagger, just in case anyone tried anything on her. To any passing stranger she seemed alert and perfectly aware of her surroundings; no pick-pocket would try and target her. But honestly, she was paying more attention to the uneven cobblestones that paved the road and the pungent smell of the air than what was actually happening around her.

Time was running thin, and she knew it. They needed to get out of Treno fast. Because Treno was so close to Lindblum she knew it was only a matter of time before the authorities began to search for her there too. Still, there was the problem of not having a way out. Kirai wouldn't allow anyone near him except Mikoto, and even if the beast would allow both of them to ride him, Ryuu would never willingly climb onboard.

Just as she was passing by a block full of broken down thrift stores and pawn shops, she was jerked into reality when she bumped into something. She stopped herself and averted her eyes to see that an old and knobby cane had been thrust into her path. She followed the cane to the arm that was holding it, expecting to see some senile old man but found something that surprised her. A young woman, dressed in flowing garments and big silver jewelry, had stopped the Genome's progression home.

Mikoto opened her mouth to say something, but the woman beat her to it. "Come in, lost child," she said, her voice airy. "You're the one the spirits have been looking for."

"E-Excuse me?" Mikoto asked bewilderedly.

"Mikoto, isn't it, my dear?" the woman continued. Her eyes, once probably a dark brown, were cloudy gray and cast a vacant stare in Mikoto's direction. Black hair, as messy as a wild forest, was tied back from her face with a blood red scarf.

"Yes, my name is Mikoto..." she said uneasily.

"Well, dear, I don't mean to startle you. I know that this can't sound very appealing to you, a blind gypsy such as myself telling you that deceased spirits are trying to contact you. But they are. Every night, my dear. They've led me right to you."

"Who are you? Where are you from?"

"You can call me Sasha," the woman said as she stumbled to her feet. "And I am from nowhere, mainly because I live everywhere." Her thin mouth curled into a smile. "Follow me, dear, follow me."

Feeling very awkward, and also very confused, Mikoto forgot all previous notions of returning home right away and followed the woman into an old building that seemed to be tipping over. The interior was very dark, not that Sasha could tell the difference. Several long candles lit in a procession across the room provided the only light. The gypsy managed to navigate herself around the clutter of the room with such expertise that one could assume that she was able to see. She sat herself down at a large round table and motioned for Mikoto to sit in the seat opposite of her.

Quietly, Mikoto took the seat and sat her groceries on the floor next to her. "Yes, yes, my dear. Two spirits, very much alike in personality have been contacting me. They want me to speak with you on their behalf."

"I'm sorry, ma'am," Mikoto apologized quietly, "but this is such an outrageous claim, I'm having trouble believing you."

"And I understand perfectly." Through the dim lighting of the room Mikoto saw Sasha smile once again. "So shall I prove it to you?"

Mikoto didn't answer, but Sasha took no heed of that. With a sigh she lit a match and a stick of incense next to her. For a moment she breathed in the fumes and she closed her eyes.

"Mikoto…Tribal…is it? Let's see…I'm seeing a blue light. A blue light that is very intense. I can tell that this light is displeasing to you, and that it always has been. That is why to this day you dislike the color blue. Though you look young you have the mind of an adult. You have what you like to refer to as a curse, something that separates you from the world. Something that you believe makes you a 'freak.' You and I are very similar in many ways, Mikoto…" Sasha smiled her odd little smile and Mikoto couldn't help but smile back.

"Who is trying to contact me?"

"Your brother," she answered. "Or should I say, your brothers. They're a very confusing bunch, they are. As their messages seem to contradict one another. But I'll start with the strongest of the two. He wants me to tell you that you're doing an excellent job, he's very proud of you. Don't give up! That's the main thing he wants me to say."

"Is it…Zidane?"

"That's what he says," Sasha laughed quietly. "Now the other message is…" she paused for a moment. Her eyes narrowed and she looked as if she was listening to someone speaking to her, and she was answering in a murmur. She looked nervous.

"He wants to talk to you for himself," she said slowly. "Generally I do not allow this, for when a medium allows a spirit to enter her body she opens a gate to other spirits."

"Don't do anything you don't want to do."

"It seems very important…" Sasha continued in her airy voice. "I will allow it, only because I feel as if I can trust him." She began to murmur to the spirit something that sounded like, 'not yet, not yet.' Mikoto watched Sasha reach behind herself and fiddle with some chains on the walls. "This is just a precaution, for your safety, really," she stated as she strapped the shackles on her wrists.

The ebony haired woman breathed in deeply and went very still. Suddenly she let out a breath that sounded almost painful and Mikoto watched her chest swell. Then, in a voice more real than ever she heard someone say, "Mikoto! I've found something to help you!" It wasn't Sasha's voice, it was Kuja's.

"Kuja! Oh my God, Kuja, is that really you!"

A genuine smile crept across Sasha's face that mirrored Kuja's. "Mikoto, it's perfect. I've found a loophole, something to help you win! This isn't about Gaia or Garland winning, it's all about you."

"What are you talking about?"

"Kamikaze, Mikoto! I know how to stop kamikaze! And to make you mortal again!"

"You do?" she exclaimed, leaning forward in excitement. "W-Well, tell me! Tell me, how do I stop it?"

"Concentrate your-" Sasha stopped abruptly and began to shake violently and in Mikoto's frightened eyes it looked as if she was having a seizure.

"Kuja!" Mikoto exclaimed loudly, throwing her hands down and leaning on the table. "Kuja are you still there!"

Mikoto jumped from her seat and ran to Sasha's side and watched in horror as the woman continued to writhe as if in complete agony. Her arms still strapped the wall, she seemed as if she was having difficulty fighting whatever it was that was bothering her off. Suddenly the shaking stopped, and Sasha vomited on the floor.

Mikoto, just inches from Sasha's ear, although terrified, whispered, "Kuja…are you still there?"

Ever so slowly, Sasha's head turned toward Mikoto. Finally the two made eye contact, only there was something strange, there was a crazy, no, a psychotic look in the gypsy's eye as it peered at the Genome through disheveled hair. Then, without warning Sasha screamed and lunged at Mikoto, her gray eyes burning with rage. The Genome stumbled backwards and fell over an overturned chair.

"Come back here you coward!" an all-too-real voice screamed at her. "Come back here, let me finish it for you! You worthless, _mindless_, USELESS little cunt!" Sasha's long red nails slashed through the air just inches from making contact with Mikoto's skin. "Are you scared, Mikoto? Are you SCARED YET! Can't you just feel the adrenaline pumping through your veins? Let it go, let go of all of your hatred! Kill me! I DARE YOU!" Sasha screamed at her, eyes wild.

"GARLAND!" Mikoto shouted back, "Leave her alone!"

"STUPID GIRL!

"Garland!" she shouted again, this time closing her eyes so as not to see the crazed woman who seemed to be on the verge of breaking the chains that bound her, "Stop it!"

Now Sasha began to laugh, a cruel cackle of a laugh that Mikoto was sure could be heard from outside. "STOP IT!" the Genome yelled a second time, tears threatening to flow. She heard the chains on the wall groan as Sasha got closer and closer to breaking through them, when suddenly Mikoto heard the door open and saw a beam of light come into the old building. A tall figure ran across the room and using the hilt of a blade, knocked the gypsy out.

Gray eyes still opened slightly, though back to their vacant appearance, Sasha fell forward, toward Mikoto but was suspended in midair about a foot from the Genome by the chains. Mikoto took a few shuddering breaths, and stared at the motionless woman. "I-Is she?"

"She'll be fine," the man replied curtly.

Shakily, Mikoto tried to stand, but as she attempted to walk back to her chair a wave of dizziness hit her and she passed out midway through the room.

Ryuu was sitting on a couch reading a book when he heard someone urgently knocking on the door of their Treno mansion. "Coming," he announced as he casually threw the book against the chair and stood up. The knocking became more and more persistent, and the hollow sound of it resonated off every wall in the house.

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" he yelled as he approached the door. Reaching a confident hand in front of him, he turned the knob and began to open the heavy oak door "Just hold your…" he stopped short and stared in bewilderment as he saw a mountain of a redheaded man holding an unconscious Mikoto.

"What happened?" Ryuu demanded, looking shaken. "Is she okay?"

The redhead said nothing, only let himself in. Behind him stood a small, and frail looking woman with a mane of black hair and gray eyes. "I'm sorry about the intrusion, Ryuu…" she said quickly.

"What's wrong with Mikoto!" he demanded a second time.

"I'm Sasha, this is Parker, we're here to help you."

"But what's _wrong _with my girlfriend!" he yelled, almost in hysterics.

"She'll be fine, she had a little scare and passed out."

"How did you get here? How do I know I can trust you?" Ryuu asked, running to Parker and taking the limp Genome from him.

"I'm in contact with the spirits of your girlfriend's brothers. They led me to you. I know that the two of you need a way to escape the city, but you have no mode of transportation to get you across the sea to the Forgotten Continent, am I right?"

Ryuu stopped his progression to the couch to lie the motionless Mikoto down, and turned on his heel to stare in wonder at the mysterious couple.

Sasha, looking straight at him, but not truly seeing him, said, "We can help you escape. Do you trust us?"

Ryuu looked at her uneasily and bit his lower lip.

"She's an outcast, and so are we," Parker said with a booming voice. "It's always a pleasure to help," he finished with a slight bow.

Sasha smiled in his general direction. "Just like he said. But take only what you need to get you there. We'll be waiting at the airship dock, but we won't be leaving Treno until seven tonight, so as long as you're there before then, may the spirits bless you." With a small nod of her head, Sasha turned around, her garments flowing behind her, and walked out of the spacious entryway of the mansion.

Eyes wide in fear, Ryuu turned his head to the motionless Mikoto lying on the couch. After several minutes of trying to even form words, he managed to cry out, "Moogerz! Mogzika! Help me pack, we're leaving tonight!"

In the midst of their frenzy to gather all of their Stiltzkin flew through an open window. "Stiltzkin, kupo!" Moogerz exclaimed, "Now's not a good time, I hope you have some good news, kupopo."

"I have a letter, but what it says, I cannot be certain," the traveling moogle said quietly. Ryuu looked over his shoulder to see that Stiltzkin was holding the envelope out to him, and his name was scrawled haphazardly across the front in what looked to be his mother's hurried cursive. For the slightest moment, Ryuu and the mail-moogle made eye-contact, and somehow he knew then that whatever it was…was not good.

By the time Mikoto finally came to, she was not in a familiar place at all. The room she occupied was dark, messy and wet. She rolled over on the stiff bed and was able to see light shining through the cracks in an old door. Timidly she stood up and walked across the floor, the wood groaning and creaking with every step that she took. There were many voices, she could hear them all as she approached the door.

"Yar, the steam engine be acting up again. You two, go check on it!"

"Aye, aye, Cap'n!"

Where _was _she? Could it be that she's on a…

Just as she reached out to open the door it swung open and in the door frame was the same gypsy woman that she met on the streets in Treno. Her sudden appearance, as well as Mikoto's last memories of her, caused her to gasp stumble back in alarm.

"You don't have to worry, Mikoto. We're going to take you to the Forgotten Continent."

"Why am I on a pirate ship? Where are we going? And where is Ryuu?"

"These are my closest companions. They were eager to help when I told them that you needed a ride."

"But where is Ryuu?"

Sasha was silent, her cloudy eyes were downcast. "Mikoto, he…"

The Genome's eyes began to well up and before long she felt as if she was just as blind as Sasha. "Where is he, Sasha?" she whispered.

"He received a letter from his mother that his father had fallen ill, Ryuu…" she paused as if it pained her to say anything else," returned to Lindblum."

"Then, he left me?" Mikoto said quietly. She slowly backed up until she could feel the solid, damp wooden wall against her back. It had been too good to be true, and Mikoto knew it. And yet, she had hoped with every fiber of her being that it was genuine.

"When he delivered you to us, he also left this. He wanted me to give it to you." Sasha fumbled around in her pocket until she finally pulled out a roll of parchment. Hands shaking, Mikoto took it from her and untied the green ribbon binding it together. "I'll leave you alone while you read it," the gypsy said quietly, then turned away from the door and using her cane to help guide her way, she walked off.

The light in the room Mikoto occupied was far too dim for her to make out anything, so she stepped out into the daylight.

"Look, the lassie is alive after all. We though ye be dead, sleepin' all through the night and into the day!" a tall man laughed.

"Nope, still alive," she breathed, not paying him any heed. Quietly she walked over to a part of the deck that was devoid of all the shipmates. She opened the letter and immediately felt comforted by the first three words:

_**My beloved Mikoto,**_

_**Please, do not get the wrong idea. I will be with you as soon as I can. My father has fallen terminally ill, and my family needs me here in Lindblum. Mother claims he only has a few days left. Trust me that I will see you again soon. I will find a way to get back to you, come hell or high water. And when we do see each other again…Mikoto…I wanted to say this in person…but as the situation has turned into quite a nasty one, I might as well ask you now. I want to spend the rest of my life with you Mikoto, that is…if you will marry me.**_

_**  
With all my love,**_

_**Ryuu **_

Then, what next caught Mikoto's eye was something caught in the final roll of the parchment. When she unrolled it a golden band with a single small diamond fell out. Hurriedly she bent down and picked it up, placing it on her finger. She felt so happy, and yet there was another feeling haunting her. Something felt not right. Ryuu's words of "I will be with you as soon as I can," should have filled her with hope, and yet she had an eerie feeling that she might never see him again.

The more she thought about it, the more nervous she felt. She broke out in a cold sweat and gripped the railings on the deck of the airship she was on. She threw her chest out into the wind and lowered her head over the side of the ship, feeling as if she was about to get sick. That was when she noticed something that turned her blood cold. They were passing over the Shimmering Isle. And if that wasn't enough to send a chill up her spine, she noticed several sea ships sailing toward it.

"Captain," Mikoto called over her shoulder, "Is there any way we can lower our altitude?"

"Missy, gettin' ya to the Forgotten Continent be our job," answered a man who seemed to be even taller than Parker. His skin was the color of coffee beans and his head was clean shaven, making the large silver earring that he wore even more noticeable.

"With all due respect, sir, I don't think that is the best thing for me, or anyone else at this moment in time."

The captain looked bewildered at this, "Please! Lower our altitude, I must get a better look at who is occupying these ships!"

"I can't do that fer ya."

"Captain," she said again, this time unsheathing her weapon, "if you do not cooperate with me, I'm afraid I will have to use a form of language that you ruffians would understand, and I'm sure you won't want me to do that."

"We help the little lass out and this what she gives us fer thanks?" the captain roared. "Let me tell you something, missy, we all got weapons on board this airship and if ya want to play rough, you've come to the right pl-"

"Captain Guntali," Parker called out over the heads of the crew. "Do as the young lady says, it is obviously important to her."

"Do not tell me how to run my ship, Parker!" he barked.

"Aye, that it is your ship. But this is no ordinary girl here, Cap'n," Parker said, giving the captain a look that would have given the devil a run for his money.

Guntali grunted and frowned at Mikoto, then in a booming voice yelled, "Lower her just enough to see the inhabitants of the boats passing below us.

Very slowly the airship descended and all the while Mikoto peered over the side of the ship, eagerly watching as the boats came closer and closer to her view. Finally her keen eyes were able to spot the inhabitants and it made her heart beat wildly. They were Genomes. _At a time of great chaos, the Genomes will return to Terra and will receive the souls wrought of Gaia. Thus Terra will live again._

"Captain, we have to turn around."

"What is this? Firs' it's 'we have to get these kids to the Forgotten Continent' then it's, 'turn around'? I thought you were runnin' from something back there!" he cried agitatedly.

"I was, sir. But I have to go back and face it, otherwise I think I might lose someone important to me."

"I won't do it."

Angrily Mikoto stormed off of the deck and began to search the ship crying out, "SASHA! SASHA! PLEASE, HELP ME! WHERE ARE YOU?"

"In here, dear," Mikoto heard the familiar airy voice. The Genome spun around and saw the frail gypsy sitting in a doorway.

"Please! You have to help me!" Mikoto said desperately, running to her. "I have to know if he's okay. He's the only thing that matters to me now."

Sasha's vacant eyes suddenly looked saddened, "Dear, I knew the moment he told me he had to return to Lindblum that something would go wrong."

Mikoto gasped in a jagged breath.

"I tried to convince him not to go, but he was too adamant on seeing his father."

"What's happened?" the Genome asked wildly.

"I don't know, Mikoto," Sasha sighed, sadness weighing down her words. "Too many people have entered the world of the spirits now that it's become noisy, it's too jammed right and full of chaos for me to know exactly what has happened."

"Something's happening in Lindblum…" Mikoto breathed.

"Yes, something _is_ happening in Lindblum…something big, and it's taking the lives of many people."

"We have to go back there!" Mikoto shouted.

"We can't, Mikoto…" Sasha said heavily. "You will never be able to convince Guntali to turn this ship around."

"If he won't take me…" Mikoto seethed… "then I'll…I'll…" then all of a sudden she got a crazy look in her eye. "I'll fly…" she laughed, "yes, that's what I'll do! I'll fly to Lindblum."

"Mikoto, have you gone mad?"

But she wouldn't have any more. If they did not help her, she would have to find a way to do it herself. Without a single word, or thought, Mikoto jumped off the side of the ship. She heard Sasha cry something, but it was lost amidst the rushing air. As her body plummeted toward the sea, she brought her hands close to her chest and clenched them together as if praying. **_Kirai, come and save me. Kirai come and save me… _**she thought desperately. The water was approaching faster she noted with terror. She was yards from the water, then meters…then feet. She could feel the salty ocean spray against her lips as she got closer and closer. **_KIRAI…!_**

Then, just as she was sure she would hit the water, a flash of silver swooped beneath her and she fell flat on the cool scales of Kuja's dragon friend. With a beat of his magnificent wings, the dragon ascended higher and higher into the air until they were level with the airship. Mikoto looked over to where Sasha stood, Parker beside her, with an arm around her shoulders.

"Mikoto, you don't understand. Lindblum is a madhouse! You take that dragon near that city, you will be shot down before you get there," Sasha warned, her airy voice full of fear. However, Mikoto didn't pay her any attention.

Kirai beat his wings again and with a shriek, the silver dragon and his rider were gone in a flash of silver scales.

"Lindblum is falling…" Sasha noted, as she turned to Parker. "And the only thing that she will see when she gets there is the death of the man she loves." Feeling the tears slide down her face, Sasha leaned her head against Parker's chest, "We won't be able to stop her…or help her…" she said shakily.

"But she looked magnificent and confident when she rode off," Parker said, forcing a smile onto his face.

"Did she now?" Sasha asked dreamily, head still resting on her lover's chest, her eyes gazing unseeingly out to sea.

"Yes, just like in the stories you used to hear as a child."

"I'm sure she did…" Sasha sighed. "I can only hope her story has a happy ending. The one I'm seeing now does not seem like it could possibly end well."

"Dragon approaching South Gate!" a soldier cried, running toward the captain of his platoon.

"What kind of dragon, private?" the captain asked sternly.

"Silver dragon, sir. And one with a rather nasty temper," the soldier reported back, quickly. As soon as these words escaped the soldier's lips the captain saw for himself as the dragon flew into view.

"Fire all weapons at it! Don't let that winged beast get through South Gate! We have enough trouble inside the city as it is!" the captain ordered.

Mikoto and Kirai flew at breakneck speed until they were finally approaching Lindblum. Even as the world past by her in a blur, she could see the danger that awaited them just ahead. Lindblum soldiers were standing by, posted all around South Gate and she could tell that they would not let her through without a fight. She saw the arrows being released from the bows, the guns being aimed and before anything could hit either her or her dragon, she cried, "PROTECT" at the top of her lungs.

Immediately the two resonated a golden color, arrows bounced off of Kirai's already tough scales, and bullets did little more than a bug bite. South Gate was approaching fast, but it was not open, and if it didn't open soon they were going to crash.

"It's the sorceress!" one of the soldiers cried. "Did you see her magic!"

"Silent, lieutenant! Open fire!"

Then, miraculously South Gate began to open up. But what awaited them therein, was not a pretty sight. One of Lindblum's battleships had been lying in wait there all along. Before Mikoto could think the ship fired a cannon and it hit Kirai directly in the chest. While the protect spell did soften the blow, it was still a pretty critical hit. Outraged, the dragon opened his mouth and spat fire at the battleship. Though it wasn't nearly enough to destroy the armored ship, it was enough to stun the crew while Kirai flew through the gate.

"Curaga!" Mikoto cried, but just as they were on their way into the midst of the city the battleship fired another cannonball, which hit Kirai once again. She felt the strength drain out of the dragon, and helplessly held onto him as they began to descend. "Curaga!" she tried again, "Life!" but it was useless. The dragon's wounds were far too grievous. Once the beast had landed on the ground, Mikoto jumped off and ran around to the front of Kirai. The dragon's red eyes seemed distant, but he was still alive. "I'm sorry, Kirai, I'm going to have to leave you here," she said sadly.

But it was too late. Kirai had already passed and she had yet to find Ryuu.

Lindblum was in chaos; people were running around everywhere. It didn't take Mikoto very long to find out the source of the chaos either. A group of men wearing masks were walking through the streets, demanding where the sorceress was. "We know someone's hidden her! Anyone who aided in the escape of the sorceress will be destroyed!"

Gasping, Mikoto ducked into the air cab station. "I need to go to the Theater District, now!" she said quickly to the engineer.

"All of the air cabs have been disabled," he said. "Those men did it, and I can't figure out how to get them running again!"

"I need to get to the Theater District!" Mikoto cried desperately. "What's the fastest way for me to get there?"

"Go down Main St.," he said, pointing her in the direction. "Follow it all the way down and take a right on 22nd Street. There will be a sign that says 'Theater District'. Good luck!" he called after her as she ran off.

As she ran, she ran past many masked men. "Hey there!" they hollered after her. "You, stop where you are!" but she ignored them and instead ran faster. One of the benefits of the design Garland gave her was that she was much more agile than any human, they didn't stand a chance catching up with her.

While she ran she heard Lindblum's Regent announce over the intercom systems "To all citizens, do not panic. The Lindblum army is gathering up all remaining masked terrorists. Medical attention will be given to all of those who have sustained injuries during these hostilities. Please, remain in your houses until we can get this sorted out."

Faster she ran down the streets, finally she passed the sign that said 'Theater District' and oh! She could see Ryuu's house. She was so close, and she was sure that Ryuu and his family were safe inside…that is until she noticed something that made her slow down her pace tremendously. A large crowd of people were gathered around Ryuu's house, everyone murmuring to each other.

Mikoto pushed her way through until she could finally see what everyone was staring at. Ryuu's mother was standing alone in front of their house, looking absolutely horrified. "You and your family have been charged with helping the sorceress escape," a masked man was saying.

"Please, I don't know what you're trying to do, but please, leave me and my family out of it," Niya wimpered. "My husband is ill…"

"Do you deny that you aided the sorceress?"

The feeble woman didn't respond, just sob. "We saw your son grab the little bitch from the stake, we know she stayed here for some time!"

Niya was crying uncontrollably, "Do you deny it?" the masked man cried again.

"These sick bastards," a man beside Mikoto muttered.

"What are they doing this for?" she whispered.

"They're gathering up all who helped the sorceress escape and they're going to execute them all. They're calling them betrayers."

"I'll make a deal with you," the masked man smiled evilly. "If you give us your son, the son who freed her from the stake, we won't kill your entire family."

Niya looked as if she was going to faint.

"What is your decision?" he demanded.

"She doesn't have to turn me in," Ryuu said, stepping outside. "I'll admit to it."

"No, Ryuu!" his mother screamed, bawling anew and grabbing her son by his jacket. "Go back inside!" He pulled his mother's hands off of him and shook his head sadly.

"You go back inside, this is my battle."

"Battle? Boy you are mistaken. There will be no battle," the masked man chuckled maliciously. The sound of several guns being cocked could be heard and several other masked men stepped out from the crowd, each pointing a loaded gun at the defenseless Ryuu.

_No, _Mikoto thought wildly, trying again to push her way to the front. This time she was unable to, everyone was glued to his or her spot and unwilling to move. "Don't shoot!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, "DON'T SHOOT HIM!" but her voice was lost in the echo of several guns being fired at once.

Mikoto saw Ryuu's body drop, and Niya fall at once to the ground in a fit of tears. "My baby," she cried, as she crawled next to him.

"Halt!" a booming voice shouted, "You're all under arrest!" the Lindblum army had finally made it to the Theater District. An entire unit of soldiers stood, guns aimed at the terrorists in masks.

"You're too late!" Mikoto screamed at the soldiers. "You're too late, you sons of bitches! They've killed him! THEY'VE KILLED HIM!" she screamed. She felt a rush of energy, and a crimson aura surrounded her. With newfound strength she pushed everyone out of her way as if they were merely insects, and forcibly made her way to the center of the circle.

"You there! Girl! Stay away from them! They are dangerous!" one of the Lindblum soldiers yelled at her.

"Not nearly as dangerous as I am right now!" she roared.

"WE NEED EVERYONE WHO IS STANDING HERE RIGHT NOW TO LEAVE!" another soldier cried out.

Mikoto still continued to advance on the masked man, the one who had been threatening Ryuu's mother, who had ordered the termination of Ryuu. She was going to make sure he paid for what he did to Ryuu, to Ryuu's family, to her. She _hated _him, she wanted to _kill _him. As she got closer the world around her blurred and she saw herself running down that cursed corridor. The one she saw so many times in her dreams.

"_You have every right to be angry, Mikoto!"_ she heard Kuja say. _"He took something important to you. Make **him** pay for it!"_

"_Don't forget about everyone else!" _Zidane's voice piped in. _" If you lose it right now, the world as you know it will no longer exist. You will kill every man, woman, child and animal that walks on this planet."_

"_Yes, Mikoto. Let yourself go, by all means! Do it! Won't it feel good?" _Garland's evil cackle joined in.

**_What's your decision?_** They all asked at once. Their voices echoing off the walls of her consciousness.

"_You can't sacrifice the lives of thousands…no, millions of innocent civilians!"_

"_Yes you can, Mikoto! Do it!" _

"_You don't have to, Mikoto! There's another way!"_

"_Silence, defect! Do not stick your nose in what you know nothing of!" _Garland's voice hissed.

"_Mikoto, I know it sounds crazy! But if you will just trust me! Come this way! I know a way around it!"_

"_Don't destroy, Gaia!"_

"_It's your destiny! You can't hide from it!"_

She was spinning. She had to choose and she had to do it now, Kamikaze was already surging through her veins, and if she didn't decide soon she would end up doing Garland's will.

Eyes clenched shut, Mikoto ran toward the voice that seemed the most soothing. A pair of arms welcome her, _"Alright, kiddo. Here's what you gotta do," _Kuja said reassuringly.

"_Grab that bastard!" _

The world came into clear focus, and now Mikoto found herself face-to-face with the man who had single handedly destroyed her world. She reached up and grabbed his shoulders. Although hidden behind a mask, Mikoto could see the terror in his eyes, and nothing in the world could have pleased her more.

"_Concentrate all of the energy that is surging through your body right now into him. It's like magic, remember the book in Garland's Observatory? It's just like that! Push all of that energy into him!"_

Her whole body was shaking and the crimson glow was becoming brighter and brighter. Mikoto concentrated with all of her might to push all of that energy, all of the hatred, and all of the malice that Garland put into her small body into masked man. Soon, the two were suspended far above the ground, surrounded by that same red glow.

"What's going on here?"

"That's the sorceress!"

"What's she doing to him?"

The excited and frantic murmurings of the crowd began to die down when all of a sudden the color of the aura turned from crimson red to gold.

"What the hell!" one of the soldiers gasped as the aura got brighter and brighter, and the two ascended higher and higher.

"Ignore it, men!" the captain hollered. "Gather up the remaining terrorists!"

Though it seemed nearly impossible for them to drag their gaze away from the spectacle, the soldiers gathered and restrained the remaining masked men.

"CALL THE PARAMEDICS! WE HAVE A CRITICAL INJURY, POSSIBLY EVEN A FATALITY!" the captain of the unit yelled to one of his men. The soldier saluted him and took off down the street, following his orders.

Kai ran out of the house and held onto his mother as she continued to sob and shiver over the body of her son. "Look, Ma!" he said, pointing to the golden glow.

Eyes fat with tears, Niya looked skyward too. "Kill him, Mikoto. Kill that bastard," she hissed. Then, as if on command there was a loud booming noise, the golden aura that had inhabited both the masked man and Mikoto exploded into a shower of golden sparks. The crowd gasped and watched as the bodies of the two fell from the air and landed with an undignified thud on the pavement.

"We can't say much, ma'am. Their bodies don't have so much as a scratch on them. The most I can say is a guess, and that's that they're hearts exploded."

"What do you mean their 'hearts exploded'?" Kashiya demanded.

"That's my best guess, the only way to find out would be to give them an autopsy."

"No! You can't do that!" she screeched. There was no telling what they might find! Mikoto was never completely human, after all.

"Well then what do you suspect we do with her body?" the doctor asked. "She has no identification, and no one is stepping forward to say they know who she is."

"She's a friend of mine, I'll see to it that she has a proper burial." And with that said, Kashiya and Seth picked up the motionless Mikoto and walked off.

When Mikoto opened her eyes, the first thing she noticed was the cool grass under her. The sky was a light blue, and not a cloud in it. Then she noticed something else, there was a face peering over her.

"Welcome home, Miki…" he said, holding a hand down to her. Her eyes were still having trouble focusing, but finally she could make out the face. But it couldn't be; her eyes had to be playing a trick on her.

"Zidane?"

A warm smile spread across his face as he helped her up into an embrace. "We've all been waiting for you."

"Wha-?"

Zidane pointed to their behind her and Mikoto turned her head. It was all of Zidane's friends, exactly how she remembered them. Everyone from the young and beautiful Dagger, to the very young and rambunctious Eiko, to the quiet and stoic Amarant, were waiting for her. They were all there, and they were all smiling.

"But what about…?" she stopped herself. "Never mind," she blushed, "he survived, didn't he?"

No one said anything for a moment, but then Dagger spoke up, "If you're talking about Ryuu…" she said quietly, "just look over there."

The group parted down the center and Ryuu was standing in the back, smiling wide. "Mikoto!" he cried running toward her. In his excitement he picked her up and spun her around. "You _were _able to beat Kamikaze! We all knew you could do it!"

He hugged her tight, and for the first time ever, Mikoto was able to hug him back and know that now, no matter what, nothing could separate them ever again.

**Final Author's Note:**

Thank you everyone for being patient. I know it was a very long wait for the very end of this story, but I'm hoping it was worth it. There won't be another sequel, this series will stop here. I'm not even sure how I could do a sequel now that everyone from the original game is officially dead. Anyway, if you are still interested in our stories we are still working on a FF8 story "Taming the Lion" which seems to be our most popular story. If you are interested in reading that (because I promise I will finish it as well) then please do! As always your feedback is greatly appreciated. I want to hear what everyone has to say! (This was one ending of three, but the most widely liked it seemed.)

So…now all I have left to do is say my thank yous! Thank you, first and foremost, to all of my loyal readers (especially thank you for not giving up on me!) I also want to thank my wonderful Beta-Reader, Noelle (a.k.a. Save-the-Queen), who has had to put up with me and my writing for this series for four (count them) four years! (Whew, that's a long time!) I would also like to thank BreeAnne, the original moogle muse. Without her I would have never started to write (nor finish these stories!) Last but not least I want to thank all of the people who have had to put up with me rambling on about my story (especially when they've never played the game) because I was having a writer's block and was in severe need of ideas.

Thank you everyone!

**Some Random Reviewer: **Trust me, I never intended on keeping everyone waiting for so long. I got busy with other things, then lost the desire to write (after taking a composition class which made me question my talents as a writer…after getting a series of F's on papers), and then lastly never made "productive" use of what little time I could have used to write. (I'll admit it, I vegged in front of the television.) But thank you very much for your wonderful review! It made me want to continue to write again!

**FFlover**: I hope you haven't decided to go on strike. I mean it has been…whew… over a year ago since I updated this story. Hopefully the ending made up for the wait.

**Robshi: **I decided to not go with the idea of multiple endings for this story, mainly because I wanted there to be a specific ending. Even though I know everyone likes choice, I think they also want closure more than that. And when you give them three different "closures" they're not sure which one is the actual conclusion. This way just saved a big headache in the long run.

**Oblivion Viruses: **It's been a long time since we talked. I'm getting ready to head off to college this Wednesday. My IM has remained the same, if you want to get a hold of me again!

**NOTE TO ALL READERS/FANS:** Because of certain situations, BreeAnne and I will no longer be writing together under one username. I, Anna, will continue (and finish) "Taming the Lion", as that was our last big project. BreeAnne may or may not choose to finish her story "Run Away With Me!" After "Taming the Lion" has been completed, however, I will most likely continue to write, but under a different username. I will inform everyone of this when it occurs. Thanks once more for everyone's patience!

Please review! Flames and feedback are always appreciated!


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